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do 


STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 


IN  A    NEW   DRESS 


BY 

GRACE    H.  KUPFER,  A.M. 


D.  C.  HEATH  &  CO.,  PUBLISHERS 
BOSTON     NEW  YORK     CHICAGO 


COPYRIGHT,  1897 
BY  D   C-  HEATH  &  Co. 


PREFACE 


ALMOST  all  boys  and  girls  like  fairy  tales  ;  they  appeal 
to  the  imaginative  side  of  the  child's  nature.  We  cannot 
make  school  reading  effective  as  a  means  of  education  un- 
less we  make  it  a  pleasure  as  well :  we  must  recognize  the 
activity  of  the  imagination  in  childhood. 

Myths  are  closely  akin  to  fairy  tales,  and  nothing  in 
the  whole  field  of  literature  can  so  well  serve  our  purpose. 
The  myths  of  the  Greeks  and  Romans  are  especially  val- 
uable because  they  have  become  an  inseparable  part  of 
art  and  literature.  They  have  a  historical  value,  too, 
in  conveying  to  the  reader  some  idea  of  the  thoughts 
and  habits  of  the  beauty-loving  people  with  whom  they 
originated. 

In  this  little  book  I  have  gathered  together  some  of 
the  most  pleasing  of  these  myths,  and  have  told  them  in 
simple,  fairy-tale  style,  without  any  attempt  to  explain  their 
origin,  or  to  point  a  moral.  If  they  please  and  interest 
the  child,  they  will  fulfill  their  purpose. 

I  have  avoided  the  use  of  an  undue  number  of  proper 
names,  —  those  stumbling-blocks  in  the  pathway  of  a 
young  reader.  Just  enough  have  been  given  to  hold  the 
reader's  interest  and  to  make  him  familiar  with  the  chief 
characters  in  the  mythical  play,  —  characters  that  he  will 
meet  again  and  again  in  literature  and  art.  The  pronoun- 

338543 


4  PREFACE 

cing  list  on  page  8  includes  all  these  names,  and  with  a 
little  help  here  and  there  from  the  teacher  they  need 
cause  the  pupil  no  difficulty. 

Following  many  of  the  stories  there  are  poems  bearing 
directly  on  the  subjects.  These  have  been  selected  with 
the  utmost  care.  They  are  designed  not  merely  to  intro- 
duce the  children  to  some  of  our  greatest  authors,  but 
also  to  cultivate  a  taste  for  what  is  purest  and  best  in 
literature. 

The  illustrations  are  intended  to  serve  an  educative 
purpose  similar  to  that  of  the  poems.  They  are  repro- 
ductions of  famous  paintings  and  sculptures  by  the  fore- 
most artists  of  all  ages,  and  it  is  hoped  that  they  may 
awaken  the  true  artistic  sense. 

The  poems  by  Longfellow,  Lowell,  Phoebe  Gary,  and 
Edith  M.  Thomas  are  printed  by  permission  of,  and  ar- 
rangement with,  their  publishers,  Houghton,  Mifflin,  and 
Co. ;  and  the  poems  by  William  Cullen  Bryant  and  Fitz- 
Greene  Halleck  by  permission  of  D.  Appleton  and  Co. 
Thanks  are  due  also  to  the  Century  Co.,  in  whose  pub- 
lication, St.  Nicholas,  the  poem  "  Invitation  to  Echo," 
first  appeared. 

G.  H.  K. 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

THE  KINGDOM  ABOVE  THE  CLOUDS 9 

The  Wonderful  World      .     .     Lilliput  Lectures       .     .  15 

THE  GREAT  BEAR  AND  THE  LITTLE  BEAR 16 

The  Gladness  of  Nature    .     .      William  C.  Bryant      .  21 

A  STORY  OF  THE  SPRINGTIME,     PART  I     .......  22 

The  Voice  of  Spring    .     .     .     Felicia  Hemans  ...  24 

A  STORY  OF  THE  SPRINGTIME,     PART  II 25 

The  Fountain James  R.  Lowell     .     .  29 

THE  CHILDHOOD  OF  APOLLO  AND  DIANA 30 

The  Brook Alfred  Tennyson      .     .37 

ECHO  AND  NARCISSUS 38 

Invitation  to  Echo   ....     Edith  M.   Thomas   .     .  43 

How  NARCISSUS  LOVED  His  OWN  IMAGE 44 

A  WEB  AND  A  SPIDER 46 

"Twist  ye,  Twine  ye"      .     .      Walter  Scott  ....  51 

THE  STORY  OF  THE  LAUREL 52 

Cupid Thomas  Moore    ...  57 

THE  STORY  OF  A  SWEET  SINGER 58 

Orpheus  with  His  Lute     .     .      William  Shakspeare    .  61 

Eurydice Francis   W.  Bourdillon  62 

THE  QUEEN  HUNTRESS  AND  A  BOLD  HUNTER 63 

The  Hunter's  Song       .     .     .     Barry  Cornwall       .     .  67 

THE  STORY  OF  PERSEUS 68 

Lullaby Alfred  Tennyson      .     .  71 

How  PERSEUS  WENT  IN  QUEST  OF  MEDUSA'S  HEAD     .     .  72 

How  PERSEUS  WON  A  WIFE 78 

THE  STORY  OF  lo 82 

Song  to   Pan Beaumont  and  Fletcher  89 

5 


6  CONTENTS 

PAGE 

How  A  MOTHER'S  PRIDE  WAS  HUMBLED 90 

Children Henry  W.  Longfellow  .  95 

A  MIGHTY  HERO  OF  OLDEN  TIMES       97 

THE  STORY  OF  A  POISONED  SHIRT        102 

THE  ARTISAN'S  WONDERFUL  WINGS 105 

Birds  in  Summer      ....     Mary  Hoivitt      .     .     .  1 1 1 

A  CRUEL  KING 113 

Rise!   For  the  Day  is  Passing     Adelaide  Procter      .     .  115 

A  LOCK  OF  PURPLE  HAIR,  AND  WHAT  CAME  OF  IT   .     .     .  116 

THE  CRUEL  KING'S  PUNISHMENT 119 

A  THREAD  THAT  SAVED  MANY  LIVES 121 

How  A  WICKED  CITY  WAS  DESTROYED 124 

A  DREAM  THAT  CAME  TRUE 130 

In  Absence Phcebe  Gary     ....  135 

THE  STORY  OF  THE  GOLDEN  FLEECE,     PART  I     ....  136 

The  Cloud        Percy  B.  Shelley      .     .  138 

THE  STORY  OF  THE  GOLDEN  FLEECE,     PART  II  .     .     .     .  139 

The  Arrow  and  the  Song     .     Henry  W.  Longfellow  .  142 

THE  STORY  OF  THE  GOLDEN  FLEECE,     PART  III      .     .     .  143 

How  A  BOY  LOVED  A  STAG 149 

Earth  to  Earth Phcebe  Gary     .     .     .     .  152 

A  SEA  GOD  AND  A  WICKED  ENCHANTRESS 152 

The  Sea  Hath  Its  Pearls     .     Henry  W.Longfellow  .  156 

A  YOUTH  WHO  WAS  CHANGED  INTO  A  FLOWER  ....  156 

To  a  Friend Fitz-Greene  Halleck     .  161 

A  WONDERFUL  SCULPTOR 162 

A  MUSICAL  CONTEST  OF  LONG  AGO 166 

The  Sweet  Singer    ....     Henry  W.Longfellow  .  169 

A  GIANT  WHO  LOVED  A  SEA  NYMPH 170 

The  Shepherd's  Song  to  His 

Love Christopher  Marlowe  .  176 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


PAGE 


1.  SLEEPING  LOVE' (Perrault)     .     .    Frontispiece 

2.  AURORA (Guido  Reni)    ....  11 

3.  THE  CHASE (Debay) 17 

4.  CERES (Glyptothek,  Munich)      .  27 

5.  LATONA  AND  HER  CHILDREN  (Rinehart)         ....  33 

6.  ECHO (Roberts) 39 

7.  A  SPINNER (Moreau) 47 

8.  APOLLO  BELVEDERE    .     .     .  (Vatican,  Rome)    ...  55 

9.  DIANA  OF  VERSAILLES     .     .  (Louvre,*  Paris)    ...  65 
10.  PERSEUS  AND  THE  GRAEAE  (Burne-Jones)   ....  75 
n.  PERSEUS      .......  (Canova) 83 

12.  NIOBE (Uffizi  Palace,  Florence)  93 

13.  FORTUNE (Vatican,  Rome)    ...  99 

14.  MINERVA  DE  VELLETRI  .     .  (Louvre,  Paris)     .     .     .  107 

15.  FLYING  MERCURY    ....  (Bologna) 125 

1 6.  JASON  AND  THE  DRAGON     .  (Salvator  Rosa)    .     .     .  147 

17.  THE  DISCOBOLUS     ....  (Vatican,  Rome)    .     .     .  157 
iS.  VENUS  DE  MILO      ....  (Louvre,  Paris)    .     .     .  163 
19.  APOLLO  CITHARAEDUS     .     .  (Vatican,  Rome)    .     .     .  171 


NAMES  USED  IN  THE  STORIES 


A'  ?lB. 

QTr'95. 

HSKcfl  ISg. 

N6p'  tune. 

Ac  tae'on. 

€5Fehis. 

H^  a  cln'  thus. 

Nes'sus. 

Ae'geus  (jOs). 

Crete. 

I  ca'  ri  an. 

Nile. 

Ae'  son. 

CiVpid. 

Ie'  a  rus. 

Nl'obe. 

An  dr5m'  e  da. 

Cy'  clops. 

I'  no. 

O  lym'  pus. 

ApSl'lo. 

Cyp  arls'sus. 

I'o. 

Cr'pheus. 

Araeh'ne. 

Cy'prus. 

T'ris. 

Pan. 

Ar'eas. 

Dae7  da  his. 

I'  sis. 

Per'dix. 

Xr'go. 

Dan'  a  6. 

Ja'son. 

PeVseus. 

Ar'go  nauts. 

Daph'  ne. 

Jtt'  no. 

Philg'mon. 

Xr'gos. 

DSIanl'ra. 

Jtt'pi  ter. 

Phryx'  us. 

Ar'gus. 

Di  an'  a. 

LatS'na. 

PhVto. 

Ariad'ne. 

Eeh'o. 

Mede'a. 

P51  y  phe'mus 

Ath'eng. 

E'£ypt. 

M8d  i  ter  ra'ne  an. 

Pro  s5r'  pi  n5. 

Bau'  yis. 

EQryd'i96. 

Me  du'sa. 

Pyg  ma'  li  on. 

Callls'to. 

Gal  ate'  a. 

M5r'  eu  ry. 

Syyl'la  (sll). 

Cassiopeia. 

Glau'^us. 

Ml'  das. 

ST9'  i  ly. 

£en'  taur 

Greeye. 

MInSr'va. 

S5m'  nus. 

Ce'reg. 

Gor'gons. 

Ml'nos. 

Sy'iiQX. 

ge^yx. 

Ha'deg. 

Mtn'otaur. 

Thebeg. 

€ha'ron. 

Hal  cy'o  n5. 

Nar  yis'  sus. 

The'  setts. 

€h!'ron. 

H61'16. 

N6ph'ele. 

Ve'nus. 

STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 


THE   KINGDOM    ABOVE   THE-  CLOUDS 

LONG,  long  ago,  there  lived,  in  the  land  which  we  call 
Greece,  a  race  of  brave  men  and  beautiful  women.  They 
thought  their  own  land  the  best  and  the  fairest  in  the 
world ;  and  as  they  watched  the  sunsets  and  the  rising  of 
the  moon  and  all  the  other  beautiful  things  that  nature 
showed  them,  they  were  filled  with  awe  and  wonder. 

So  they  said,  "  There  must  be  some  mighty  people 
living  above  us,  who  rule  the  sun  and  the  moon  and  the 
stars  and  the  oceans  and  the  rivers  and  the  woods  and 
everything  else.  They  are  great  and  happy  and  good, 
and  they  live  forever ;  they  can  do  whatever  they  please, 
and  from  them  come  all  our  joys  and  sorrows.  Let  us 
worship  them  and  sing  of  them."  And  they  called  these 
mighty  people  gods  and  goddesses. 

In  the  central  part  of  Greece,  there  stood  a  lofty  moun- 
tain called  Olympus.  Its  sides  were  covered  with  thick, 
green  woods ;  and  it  was  so  high  that  its  peak  seemed  to 
pierce  through  the  clouds,  up,  up  into  the  sky,  till  the  eye 
could  scarcely  follow  it.  None  of  the  people  of  Greece 
had  ever  climbed  to  the  top  of  Mount  Olympus,  and  they 
said  it  was  there  that  the  gods  lived,  among  the  clouds 
and  the  stars. 

9 


tO  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

They  pictured  the  marble  halls,  with  their  great,  shin- 
ing pillars  and  their  thrones  of  gold  and  silver.  The  walls 
of  the  palaces,  they  said,  were  covered  with  pictures  such 
as  no  man's  hand  had  ever  painted,  —  pictures  such  as  we 
sometimes  see  in  the  sunset  sky,  when  the  pink  and  gold 
and  purple  cloudlets  sink  into  the  west,  changing  their 
shape  each  moment  that  we  gaze  at  them. 

Up  in  that  land  above  the  clouds,  it  was  springtime  all 
the  year  round.  It  never  rained  there  and  it  was  never 
cold ;  the  birds "  sang  from  morning  till  night,  and  the 
flowers  bloomed  from  one  year's  end  to  the  other. 

Sometimes  the  mighty  rulers  of  the  sun  and  the  moon 
and  all  the  world  left  their  homes  and  came  down  to  visit 
the  people  on  the  earth.  Once  in  a  great,  great  while 
they  came  in  their  own  true  forms  ;  but  far  oftener  they 
took  on  the  shape  of  animals  or  human  beings,  so  that 
they  might  not  be  recognized. 

The  people  of  Greece,  who  made  up  all  the  stories  I 
am  going  to  tell  you,  believed  that  if  they  did  anything 
wrong  it  would  displease  the  gods,  and  that  they  would 
be  punished  by  sickness  or  death  or  some  other  evil ;  but 
if  they  did  what  was  right,  the  mighty  people  would  be 
pleased  and  would  love  them  and  send  them  wealth  and 
happiness. 

So  they  built  great  temples  of  marble,  and  in  them 
they  set  up  gold  and  ivory  statues  of  the  gods ;  and  there 
they  came,  in  time  of  trouble,  to  ask  for  help  and  comfort ; 
and  when  they  were  happy  they  came  to  offer  up  their 
thanks  to  the  kind  gods. 

The  king  of  the  gods  was  Jupiter,  who  ruled  not  only 
the  people  of  the  earth,  but  the  mightier  people  of  the 
heavens.  He  it  was  who  hurled  the  thunderbolts  and 


•8 

51 


KINGDOM  ABOVE   THE  CLOUDS  13 

guided  the  winds  and  the  waters,  and,  in  a  word,  ruled 
over  all  heaven  and  earth.  His  wife  was  Juno,  the  queen 
of  heaven,  who  helped  him  in  his  work.  I  am  afraid  you 
will  not  love  Juno  very  much  by  the  time  you  have  read 
all  the  stories  I  am  going  to  tell  you  ;  for  she  was  selfish 
and  jealous,  and,  like  all  such  people,  often  made  herself 
and  others  very  unhappy.  She  had  one  great  favorite,  a 
peacock,  which  was  always  with  her. 

Besides  Jupiter  and  Juno  there  were  many  other  gods 
and  goddesses ;  and  as  you  are  going  to  read  stories  about 
some  of  them,  I  will  tell  you  who  they  were. 

Apollo  was  the  god  of  the  sun,  of  music,  and  of  love. 
He  was  very  beautiful,  as  indeed  almost  all  the  gods  were ; 
but  he  was  the  fairest  of  them  all.  He  drove  his  golden 
sun  chariot  through  the  heavens  every  day,  and  on  his  lyre 
he  played  sweet  music.  He  could  heal  all  kinds  of  wounds, 
and  could  shoot  wonderfully  well  with  his  golden  arrows. 

His  twin  sister  was  Diana,  goddess  of  the  moon.  She 
drove  her  silver  car  at  night  when  Apollo  had  gone  to  rest 
in  the  western  sky.  She  was  also  the  goddess  of  hunt- 
ing ;  and,  in  the  daytime,  she  wandered  through  the  green 
woods,  with  her  arrows  at  her  side,  while  her  fleet  hounds 
sped  on  in  front  of  her,  and  a  train  of  young  girls  and 
wood  nymphs  followed. 

As  Apollo  was  the  most  beautiful  of  all  the  gods,  so 
Venus,  the  queen  of  love  and  beauty,  was  the  fairest  of 
the  goddesses.  She  was  supposed  to  have  sprung  from 
the  sea  one  day,  in  a  cloud  of  spray,  and  all  the  beings 
who  dwelt  in  the  sea,  the  sea  nymphs  and  the  sea  gods 
and  Neptune  himself,  rose  with  songs  of  gladness  to  wel- 
come their  queen. 

She  had  a  little  son  named  Cupid,  who  also  was  the 


14  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

god  of  love ;  and  he  was  sometimes  called  the  god  of  the 
bow,  because  he  was  never  seen  without  his  bow  and  ar- 
rows. You  will  hear  later  what  curious  arrows  they  were. 
Cupid  was  always  young  and  rosy  and  dimpled ;  he  never 
grew  up  as  the  other  god  children  did. 

Neptune,  who  was  Jupiter's  brother,  was  the  ruler  of 
all  the  waters  of  the  earth.  The  gods  of  the  sea,  and  the 
mermaids  and  the  river  gods  as  well,  were  his  subjects. 
His  palace  beneath  the  ocean  waves  was  built  of  seaweeds 
and  corals  and  shells.  f 

I  must  not  forget  to  tell  you  of  Minerva,  the  goddess  of 
wisdom  and  of  war.  The  owl  was  her  favorite  bird.  She 
spent  much  of  her  time  in  weaving  and  embroidering,  for 
she  was  very  fond  of  this  pastime. 

And  then  there  was  Mercury,  fleet-footed  Mercury. 
He  was  called  "The  Swift"  and  no  wonder;  for  he  had 
winged  sandals,  and  could  fly  faster  than  the  lightest  bird. 
He  had  a  winged  cap  besides,  and  a  magic  staff  wreathed 
with  two  serpents,  with  which  he  could  do  all  sorts  of 
things.  He  was  the  messenger  of  the  gods  on  all  their 
errands  between  heaven  and  earth. 

Away  down  in  the  center  of  the  earth,  there  was  a 
gloomy  kingdom  known  as  Hades  or  the  land  of  shades  ; 
and  the  Greeks  thought  that  people  who  died  went  down 
into  this  dark  land.  Its  ruler  was  King  Pluto.  He  was 
very  lonely  in  his  somber  palace;  and  one  time,  as  you 
shall  hear,  he  came  to  earth  and  stole  away  the  daughter 
of  Ceres  to  live  with  him  in  his  underground  home. 

Ceres  was  the  goddess  of  the  earth,  and  the  people 
looked  to  her  for  bountiful  harvests,  and  for  the  growth  of 
everything  that  sprang  from  the  earth. 

Lastly  there  was  Pan,  the  god  of  the  shepherds  and  of 


THE   WONDERFUL   WORLD  15 

the  woods.  He  was  a  strange  creature,  half  goat  and  half 
man.  But  he  was  loved  by  every  one,  and  especially  by 
the  shepherds ;  for  he  guarded  their  flocks  from  harm,  and 
played  his  pipes  and  danced  with  them  in  many  a  frolic. 

And,  if  we  believe  the  stories  told  by  the  Greeks,  in  and 
about  the  woods  and  the  waters  and  the  fields  wandered 
all  the  gods  I  have  spoken  of.  They  lived  their  lives  of 
mingled  pleasure  and  sorrow,  just  as  did  the  men  and 
women  who  worshiped  them,  and  pictured  them  in  their 
palaces  of  gold  and  silver  and  precious  stones,  up  in  the 
land  of  the  clouds  and  the  stars. 


THE  WONDERFUL  WORLD 

GREAT,  wide,  beautiful,  wonderful  world, 
With  the  wonderful  water  round  you  curled, 
And  the  wonderful  grass  upon  your  breast  — 
World,  you  are  beautifully  dressed. 

The  wonderful  air  is  over  me, 
And  the  wonderful  wind  is  shaking  the  tree; 
It  walks  on  the  water,  and  whirls  the  mills, 
And  talks  to  itself  on  the  tops  of  the  hills. 

You  friendly  earth,  how  far  do  you  go, 

With  the  wheat-fields  that  nod  and  the  rivers  that  flow. 

With  cities  and  gardens,  and  cliffs  and  isles, 

And  people  upon  you  for  thousands  of  miles  ? 

Ah!  you  are  so  great,  and  I  am  so  small, 
I  tremble  to  think  of  you,  world,  at  all 

(ILilliput  Lectures^ 


l6  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 


THE  GREAT  BEAR  AND  THE  LITTLE  BEAR 

THIS  is  a  story  about  a  woman  whom  you  will  all  love. 
Almost  everybody  loved  Callisto  and  her  little  son  Areas ; 
for  she  was  fair  and  good,  and  kind  to  all  who  knew  her. 

She  had  a  very  joyous  nature,  and  when  she  went 
hunting  in  the  forests  with  her  companions,  as  she  often 
did,  she  was  always  the  leader  of  the  merry  party.  She 
dearly  loved  the  woods  with  their  gurgling  brooks  and 
tuneful  birds  and  bright  flowers.  She  laughed  and  sang 
to  the  beautiful  world  about  her,  and  in  return  all  nature 
seemed  to  smile  on  her. 

I  said  that  almost  everybody  loved  Callisto ;  for  although 
her  little  boy  and  all  her  companions  and  even  the  gods 
were  very  fond  of  her,  there  was  one  who  did  not  love  her, 
and  that  was  Juno. 

For  some  reason,  Juno  could  not  bear  to  look  at  Callisto, 
and  the  lovelier  and  fairer  she  grew,  the  more  the  queen 
of  heaven  seemed  to  hate  her.  At  last,  one  day  when 
Juno  met  her  in  the  forest,  hunting  and  singing  as  she 
went  along,  all  bitter  feelings  seemed  to  rush  into  her 
heart  at  once;  and  she  hated  Callisto  so  much  that  she 
could  no  longer  bear  to  see  her. 

So  she  did  a  very  cruel  thing,  —  she  raised  her  hand 
and  spoke  a  few  magic  words.  In  an  instant  Callisto's 
slender,  white  hands  had  changed  into  great,  hairy  paws  ; 
and  where  but  a  moment  before  a  fair  young  woman  had 
stood,  there  was  now  only  a  shaggy,  ugly  bear. 

The  poor  bear,  afraid  of  herself  and  of  every  sound, 
rushed  through  the  forest,  hiding  in  caves  and  behind 
trees  whenever  she  heard  the  patter  of  feet  on  the  ground. 


THE  GREAT  AMD  LITTLE  BEAR  t$ 

For  although  her  body  was  like  a  bear's,  her  thoughts  and 
feelings  were  still  human,  and  she  feared  the  wild  beasts 
of  the  woods. 

For  fifteen  long  years,  poor  Callisto  lived  lonely  and 
sad  in  the  forest.  Her  joy  in  nature  was  all  gone.  In 
vain  the  brooks  gurgled  as  they  sped  merrily  by ;  in  vain 
the  sun  looked  down  with  his  cheery  smile  ;  in  vain  the 
birds  sang  their  happy  songs.  She  cared  for  none  of 
them,  and  no  longer  responded  to  the  beauty  that  sur- 
rounded her. 

Nuts  and  wild  honey  and  berries  were  her  food  —  the 
running  brooks,  her  drink.  At  night  she  slept  in  the  hol- 
low of  a  tree  or  in  some  dark  cavern.  Often  she  heard 
the  voices  of  her  former  friends,  as  they  went  hunting 
over  the  hills  ;  and  then  she  trembled  and  crouched  be- 
hind the  trees,  for  she  did  not  want  them  to  find  her. 

Many  a  time  her  thoughts  went  back  to  that  day  when 
she  had  last  seen  her  little  son,  and  she  wondered  what 
had  become  of  the  boy. 

So  thrice  five  summers  and  winters  passed,  and,  in  the 
meanwhile,  Areas  had  grown  to  be  a  fine,  tall  youth,  who, 
like  his  mother,  was  very  fond  of  hunting.  So  good  a 
marksman  was  he  that  he  hardly  ever  missed  his  aim, 
and  with  his  faithful  hound,  and  his  sharp  hunting  knife, 
brought  many  a  wild  deer  to  bay. 

One  day  he  took  his  bow  and  arrows,  and  started  out 
alone.  He  had  been  hunting  a  long  time,  when,  in  follow- 
ing a  deer's  track,  he  came  suddenly  into  a  little  cleared 
space,  and  saw,  standing  within  a  few  feet  of  him,  a  great, 
shaggy  bear. 

Callisto,  for  it  was  she,  did  not  hear  the  sound  of  foot- 
steps until  it  was  too  late  to  hide,  and  then  she  turned 


20  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

to  see  who  was  coming.  In  an  instant,  in  spite  of  the 
many  years  since  she  had  last  seen  him,  the  mother  knew 
her  son ;  and  she  gazed  with  wondering  eyes  at  the  child 
who  had  grown  to  be  such  a  tall,  fine-looking  boy.  She 
longed  to  speak ;  but  of  course  her  growling  would  have 
frightened  Areas,  so  she  merely  kept  her  eyes  fixed  on 
him. 

At  first  Areas  was  only  startled  at  coming  so  suddenly 
within  a  few  feet  of  a  bear  ;  but  soon  he  became  frightened 
at  the  animal's  fixed  stare.  There  was  such  a  strange 
sadness  in  the  eyes  that  gazed  at  him  that  he  felt  a  terror 
which  he  could  not  explain.  Scarcely  knowing  what  he 
did,  he  raised  his  bow  and  aimed  an  arrow  at  his  mother. 

Just  at  this  moment  Jupiter  appeared,  and  snatched 
both  bow  and  arrow  from  his  hands.  For  Jupiter  had 
always  loved  Callisto,  and  he  was  sorry  for  the  harm  his 
wife  had  done  to  one  so  good  and  gentle.  To  make  up 
as  far  as  he  could  for  Juno's  cruelty,  he  changed  both 
mother  and  son  into  bright,  glowing  stars,  and  put  them 
in  the  heavens,  to  shine  there  forever,  —  the  Great  Bear 
and  the  Little  Bear.  There  you  may  see  them  on  any 
starry  night  and  think  of  their  story. 

Juno  was  very  angry  when  she  saw  the  newly-made 
stars  twinkling  in  the  sky.  She  had  tried  to  show  her 
hatred  toward  Callisto  by  taking  away  her  human  form,  but 
now  Jupiter  had  made  her  and  her  son  far  greater  than 
human  beings.  She  went  to  Neptune,  god  of  the  sea,  and 
told  him  her  troubles.  She  asked  him  to  grant  her  at  least 
one  little  favor,  —  never  to  let  the  Great  Bear  or  the  Little 
Bear  enter  his  ocean  palace. 

If  some  time  you  watch  the  stars  over  the  ocean,  you 
will  see  that  as  the  night  passes,  they  seem  to  sink  lower 


THE  GLADNESS   OF  NATURE  21 

and  lower,  and  at  last  to  vanish  into  the  sea.  That  is 
what  Juno  meant  by  speaking  of  the  stars  entering  Nep- 
tune's ocean  palace.  Neptune  promised  to  do  as  she 
wished,  and  he  kept  his  word,  for  from  that  day  to  this, 
the  Great  Bear  and  the  Little  Bear  have  never  set. 


THE   GLADNESS   OF   NATURE 

Is  this  a  time  to  be  cloudy  and  sad, 

When  our  mother  Nature  laughs  around  ; 

When  even  the  deep  blue  heavens  look  glad, 

And  gladness  breathes  from  the  blossoming  ground? 

There  are  notes  of  joy  from  the  hang-bird  and  wren, 
And  the  gossip  of  swallows  through  all  the  sky; 

The  ground-squirrel  gayly  chirps  by  his  den, 
And  the  wilding  bee  hums  merrily  by. 

The  clouds  are  at  play  in  the  azure  space 

And  their  shadows  at  play  on  the  bright  green  vale, 

And  here  they  stretch  to  the  frolic  chase, 
And  there  they  roll  on  the  easy  gale. 

There's  a  dance  of  leaves  in  that  aspen  bower, 
There's  a  titter  of  winds  in  that  beechen  tree, 

There's  a  smile  on  the  fruit,  and  a  smile  on  the  flower, 
And  a  laugh  from  the  brook  that  runs  to  the  sea. 

And  look  at  the  broad-faced  sun,  how  he  smiles 
On  the  dewy  earth  that  smiles  in  his  ray, 

On  the  leaping  waters  and  gay  young  isles  ; 
Ay,  look,  and  he'll  smile  thy  gloom  away. 

WILLIAM  C.  BRYANT, 


22  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 


A    STORY    OF   THE    SPRINGTIME 

PART    I 

IN  the  blue  Mediterranean  Sea,  which  washes  the  south- 
ern shore  of  Europe,  lies  the  beautiful  island  of  Sicily. 
Long,  long  ago,  there  lived  on  this  island  a  goddess 
named  Ceres.  She  had  power  to  make  the  earth  yield 
plentiful  crops  of  grain,  or  to  leave  it  barren  ;  and  on  her 
depended  the  food,  and  therefore  the  life,  of  all  the  peo- 
ple on  the  great,  wide  earth. 

Ceres  had  one  fair  young  daughter,  whom  she  loved 
very  dearly.  And  no  wonder,  for  Proserpine  was  the  sun- 
niest, happiest  girl  you  could  imagine. 

Her  face  was  all  white  and  pink,  'like  apple  blossoms 
in  spring,  and  there  was  just  enough  blue  in  her  eyes  to 
give  you  a  glimpse  of  an  April  morning  sky.  Her  long, 
golden  curls  reminded  you  of  the  bright  sunlight.  In 
fact,  there  was  something  so  young  and  fair  and  tender 
about  the  maiden  that  if  you  could  imagine  anything  so 
strange  as  the  whole  springtime,  with  all  its  loveliness, 
changed  into  a  human  being,  you  would  have  looked  but 
an  instant  at  Proserpine  and  said,  "  She  is  the  Spring." 

Proserpine  spent  the  long,  happy  days  in  the  fields, 
helping  her  mother,  or  dancing  and  singing  among  the 
flowers,  with  her  young  companions. 

Way  down  under  the  earth,  in  the  land  of  the  dead, 
lived  dark  King  Pluto  ;  and  the  days  were  very  lonely 
for  him  with  only  shadows  to  talk  to.  Often  and  often, 
he  had  tried  to  urge  some  goddess  to  come  and  share 
his  gloomy  throne ;  but  not  the  richest  jewels  or  wealth 


THE  SPRINGTIME  23 

could  tempt  any  one  of  them  to  leave  the  bright  sunlight 
above  and  dwell  in  the  land  of  shades. 

One  day  Pluto  came  up  to  earth  and  was  driving  along 
in  his  swift  chariot,  when,  behind  some  bushes,  he  heard 
such  merry  voices  and  musical  laughter  that  he  drew  rein, 
and  stepping  down,  parted  the  bushes  to  see  who  was  on 
the  other  side.  There  he  saw  Proserpine  standing  in  the 
center  of  a  ring  of  laughing  young  girls  who  were  pelting 
her  with  flowers. 

The  stern  old  king  felt  his  heart  beat  quicker  at  sight 
of  all  these  lovely  maidens,  and  he  singled  out  Proser- 
pine, and  said  to  himself,  "She  shall  be  my  queen.  That 
fair  face  can  make  even  dark  Hades  light  and  beautiful." 
But  he  knew  it  would  be  useless  to  ask  the  girl  for  her 
consent  ;  so,  with  a  bold  stride,  he  stepped  into  the  midst 
of  the  happy  circle. 

The  young  girls,  frightened  at  his  dark,  stern  face,  fled 
to  right  and  left.  But  Pluto  grasped  Proserpine  by  the 
arm  and  carried  her  to  his  chariot,  and  then  the  horses 
flew  along  the  ground,  leaving  Proserpine's  startled  com- 
panions far  behind. 

King  Pluto  knew  that  he  must  hasten  away  with  his 
prize,  lest  Ceres  should  discover  her  loss ;  and,  to  keep  out 
of  her  path,  he  drove  his  chariot  a  roundabout  way.  He 
came  to  a  river ;  but  as  he  neared  its  banks,  it  suddenly 
began  to  bubble  and  swell  and  rage,  so  that  Pluto  did  not 
dare  to  drive  through  its  waters.  To  go  back  another 
way  would  mean  great  loss  of  time  ;  so  with  his  scepter 
he  struck  the  ground  thrice.  It  opened,  and,  in  an  in- 
stant, horses,  chariot,  and  all,  plunged  into  the  darkness 
below. 

But  Proserpine  knew  that  the  nymph  of  the  stream  had 


24  STORIES  OF  LONG    <4GO 

recognized  her,  and  had  tried  to  save  her  by  making  the 
waters  of  the  stream  rise.  So,  just  as  the  ground  was 
closing  over  her,  the  girl  seized  her  girdle  and  threw  it  far 
out  into  the  river.  She  hoped  that  in  some  way  the  girdle 
might  reach  Ceres  and  help  her  to  find  her  lost  daughter. 


THE  VOICE  OF   SPRING 

I  COME,  I  come !  ye  have  called  me  long ; 
I  come  o'er  the  mountains,  with  light  and  song. 
Ye  may  trace  my  step  o'er  the  waking  earth 
By  the  winds  which  tell  of  the  violet's  birth, 
By  the  primrose  stars  in/  the  shadowy  grass, 
By  the  green  leaves  opening  as  I  pass. 

I  have  looked  o'er  the  hills  of  the  stormy  North, 

And  the  larch  has  hung  all  his  tassels  forth; 

The  fisher  is  out  on  the  sunny  sea, 

And  the  reindeer  bounds  o'er  the  pastures  free, 

And  the  pine  has  a  fringe  of  softer  green, 

And  the  moss  looks  bright,  where  my  step  has  been. 

From  the  streams  and  founts  I  have  loosed  the  chain; 
They  are  sweeping  on  to  the  silvery  main, 
They  are  flashing  down  from  the  mountain  brows, 
They  are  flinging  spray  o'er  the  forest  boughs, 
They  are  bursting  fresh  from  their  sparry  caves, 
And  the  earth  resounds  with  the  joy  of  waves. 

FELICIA  HEMANS. 


THE  SPRINGTIME  2$ 

A   STORY   OF   THE    SPRINGTIME 

PART    II 

IN  the  evening  Ceres  returned  to  her  home ;  but  her 
daughter,  who  usually  came  running  to  meet  her,  was 
nowhere  to  be  seen.  Ceres  searched  for  her  in  all  the 
rooms,  but  they  were  empty.  Then  she  lighted  a  great 
torch  from  the  fires  of  a  volcano,  and  went  wandering 
among  the  fields,  looking  for  her  child.  When  morning 
broke,  and  she  had  found  no  trace  of  Proserpine,  her 
grief  was  terrible  to  see. 

On  that  sad  day,  Ceres  began  a  long,  long  wandering. 
Over  land  and  sea  she  journeyed,  bearing  in  her  right 
hand  the  torch  which  had  been  kindled  in  the  fiery 
volcano. 

All  her  duties  were  neglected,  and  everywhere  the  crops 
failed,  and  the  ground  was  barren  and  dry.  Want  and 
famine  took  the  place  of  wealth  and  plenty  throughout 
the  world.  It  seemed  as  though  the  great  earth  grieved 
with  the  mother  for  the  loss  of  beautiful  Proserpine. 

When  the  starving  people  came  to  Ceres  and  begged 
her  to  resume  her  duties  and  to  be  their  friend  again, 
Ceres  lifted  her  great  eyes,  wearied  with  endless  seeking, 
and  answered  that  until  Proserpine  was  found,  she  could 
think  only  of  her  child,  and  could  not  care  for  the  ne- 
glected earth.  So  all  the  people  cried  aloud  to  Jupiter 
that  he  should  bring  Proserpine  back  to  her  mother,  for 
they  were  sadly  in  need  of  great  Ceres'  help. 

At  last,  after  wandering  over  all  the  earth  in  her  fruit- 
less search,  Ceres  returned  to  Sicily.  One  day,  as  she 


26  STORIES   OF  LONG  AGO 

was  passing  a  river,  suddenly  a  little  swell  of  water  car* 
ried  something  to  her  feet.  Stooping  to  see  what  it  was, 
she  picked  up  the  girdle  which  Proserpine  had  long  ago 
thrown  to  the  water  nymph. 

While  she  was  looking  at  it,  with  tears  in  her  eyes, 
she  heard  a  fountain  near  her  bubbling  louder  and  louder, 
until  at  last  it  seemed  to  speak.  And  this  is  what  it 
said : 

"  I  am  the  nymph  of  the  fountain,  and  I  come  from 
the  inmost  parts  of  the  earth,  O  Ceres,  great  mother  ! 
There  I  saw  your  daughter  seated  on  a  throne  at  the 
dark  king's  side.  But  in  spite  of  her  splendor,  her 
cheeks  were  pale  and  her  eyes  were  heavy  with  weeping. 
I  can  stay  no  longer  now,  O  Ceres,  for  I  must  leap  into 
the  sunshine.  The  bright  sky  calls  me,  and  I  must  hasten 
away." 

Then  Ceres  arose  and  went  to  Jupiter  and  said,  "  I 
have  found  the  place  where  my  daughter  is  hidden.  Give 
her  back  to  me,  and  the  earth  shall  once  more  be  fruitful, 
and  the  people  shall  have  food.'" 

Jupiter  was  moved,  both  by  the  mother's  sorrow  and 
by  the  prayers  of  the  people  on  earth  ;  and  he  said  that 
Proserpine  might  return  to  her  home  if  she  had  tasted  no 
food  while  in  Pluto's  kingdom. 

So  the  happy  mother  hastened  down  into  Hades.  But 
alas !  that  very  day  Proserpine  had  eaten  six  pomegranate 
seeds;  and  for  every  one  of  those  seeds  she  was  doomed 
each  year  to  spend  a  month  underground. 

For  six  months  of  the  year  Ceres  is  happy  with  her 
daughter.  At  Proserpine's  coming,  flowers  bloom  and 
birds  sing  and  the  earth  everywhere  smiles  its  welcome 
to  its  young  queen. 


Ceres  lighted  a  torch  and  went  searching  for  her  child." 


THE  FOUNTAIN  2Q 

Some  people  say  that  Proserpine  really  is  the  spring 
time,  and  that  while  she  is  with  us  all  the  earth  seems 
fair  and  beautiful.  But  when  the  time  comes  for  Proser- 
pine to  rejoin  King  Pluto  in  his  dark  home  underground, 
Ceres  hides  herself  and  grieves  through  all  the  weary 
months  until  her  daughter's  return. 

Then  the  earth,  too,  is  somber  and  sad.  The  leaves 
fall  to  the  ground,  as  though  the  trees  were  weeping  for 
the  loss  of  the  fair,  young  queen  ;  and  the  flowers  hide 
underground,  until  the  eager  step  of  the  maiden,  return- 
ing to  earth,  awakens  all  nature  from  its  winter  sleep. 


THE   FOUNTAIN 

INTO  the  sunshine, 

Full  of  the  light, 
Leaping  and  flashing 

From  morn  till  night ! 

Into  the  moonlight, 
Whiter  than  snow, 

Waving  so  flower-like 
When  the  winds  blow ! 

Into  the  starlight, 
Rushing  in  spray, 

Happy  at  midnight, 
Happy  by  day ! 

Ever  in  motion, 

Blithesome  and  cheery, 
Still  climbing  heavenward, 

Never  aweary ; 


3O  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

Glad  of  all  weathers, 
Still  seeming  best, 

Upward  or  downward, 
Motion  thy  rest ; 

Full  of  a  nature 
Nothing  can  tame, 

Changed  every  moment, 
Ever  the  same. 

Ceaseless  aspiring, 
Ceaseless  content, 

Darkness  or  sunshine 
Thy  element ; 


Glorious  fountain  ! 

Let  my  heart  be 
Fresh,  changeful,  constant, 

Upward  like  thee! 

JAMES  RUSSELL  LOWELL. 


THE    CHILDHOOD   OF  APOLLO  AND    DIANA 

MR.  FROG,  hopping  into  the  water  or  sitting  on  a  log  in 
the  middle  of  a  mud  pond,  is  certainly  not  a  very  attrac- 
tive or  lovable  creature.  But  he  has  his  good  qualities, 
nevertheless,  and  he  improves  very  much  on  acquaintance. 

There  was  once  a  poet  who  went  out  into  the  woods  to 
sing  among  the  green  trees  ;  and  his  mind  was  filled  with 
the  story  of  a  beautiful  woman  and  two  helpless  little  chil- 
dren, who  had  been  treated  very  cruelly.  While  he  was 
thinking  about  them,  he  came  suddenly  to  a  muddy  brook, 


APOLLO  AND  DIANA  31 

and  in  the  middle  of  it,  on  a  mossy  log,  sat  five  or  six  big, 
speckled  frogs,  croaking  away  with  all  their  might. 

Now  poets,  you  must  know,  love  beautiful  things,  and 
these  frogs  were  very  ugly  indeed ;  besides  it  was  the 
first  time  the  poet  had  ever  seen  such  creatures.  So  he 
turned  away  from  them  in  disgust,  and  went  home  and 
wrote  his  story  about  the  beautiful  woman  and  the  two 
helpless  children,  and  he  put  something  about  the  frogs 
into  his  tale.  As  he  had  not  liked  them  at  all,  he  made 
them  seem  very  bad  and  ugly  ;  but  that  is  no  reason 
why  we  need  dislike  the  little  speckled  creatures,  when 
we  hear  them  croaking  in  the  marshes. 

This  is  the  story  of  the  unhappy  mother,  and  of  the 
men  who  were  changed  into  frogs  because  they  were  so 
unkind  to  her. 

Long  ago,  there  lived  in  Greece  a  very  beautiful 
woman,  whose  name  was  Latona.  It  is  a  soft,  pretty 
name,  and  will  help  us  to  picture  her  to  whom  it  belonged. 
She  was  tall  and  graceful,  and  usually  wore  soft,  pearl- 
colored  robes.  Her  hair  was  dark,  and  her  eyes  were 
a  deep,  clear  gray.  They  were  sad  eyes,  because  Lato- 
na's  life  was  very  unhappy. 

Juno  hated  the  gray-eyed  woman ;  and  she  treated  her 
so  badly,  and  was  so  unkind  to  her,  that  poor  Latona  had 
to  flee  from  place  to  place,  to  escape  the  queen's  anger. 

One  day,  she  came  to  a  stream  ;  and  there  lay  a  little 
rowboat  without  any  oars  ;  and  the  ripples  of  water  made 
soft  music  as  they  plashed  against  its  sides. 

The  water  sounded  so  quiet  and  restful,  and  poor 
Latona  was  so  tired  and  discouraged,  that  she  stepped 
into  the  boat  and  pushed  it  off  from  the  shore.  She  sat 
down,  her  hands  folded  in  her  lap,  softly  crying  as  she 


32  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

drifted  along.  Night  came,  and  still  the  little  boat  went 
bravely  along  through  the  dark  water,  and  the  stars 
looked  down  in  pity,  as  though'  they  wished  to  comfort 
Latona. 

It  seemed  a  long  time  since  she  had  left  the  land, 
although  it  was  only  a  few  hours.  Toward  morning,  she 
was  startled  from  her  sorrow  by  the  grating  of  the  keel 
on  the  shore ;  and  when  she  looked  up,  she  saw  that  she 
had  drifted  to  a  little  island. 

It  was  a  pretty  place,  covered  with  trees,  and  along  the 
shores  grew  many  bright  flowers.  It  all  looked  so  cheer- 
ful that  Latona  took  heart  again  and  stepped  out  of  the 
boat  to  explore  the  little  kingdom  she  had  found. 

Nor  was  she  disappointed.  Berries  and  fruits  of  all 
kinds  grew  there  in  plenty,  and  in  the  very  center  of  the 
island  was  a  cave  which  served  well  for  a  house. 

Best  of  all,  by  the  side  of  the  cave,  ran  a  brook  of 
clear,  sparkling  water.  It  danced  along  over  the  pebbles, 
and  wound  its  way  across  the  little  island,  and  seemed  to 
sing  a  song  of  welcome  to  Latona.  In  fact,  it  was  as 
lovely  a  home  as  any  one  could  wish  for. 

And  here  Latona  lived  for  a  long,  long  time.  She  was 
very  happy,  and  hoped  that  Juno  would  never  find  her  in 
this  hidden  corner  of  the  earth.  After  a  while  one  of  the 
gods,  who  loved  and  pitied  her,  sent  two  beautiful  twin 
babes  to  gladden  her  heart.  She  never  wearied  of  watch- 
ing her  little  boy  and  girl,  as  they  lay  asleep  or  played 
with  their  fingers  and  toes  in  true  baby  fashion.  She 
named  the  boy  Apollo,  and  the  girl  Diana. 

One  sad  day,  when  she  was  sitting  in  the  sunshine  with 
her  children,  a  black,  angry-looking  cloud  spread  over  the 
sky ;  and  when  Latona  looked  up  toward  it,  she  saw  Juno 


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0 


f 


APOLLO  AND  DIANA  35 

standing  before  her.  With  harsh  words,  the  goddess  or- 
dered the  poor  mother  to  leave  the  island  at  once  ;  and, 
although  it  made  Latona  very  sad  to  go  from  the  home 
where  she  had  been  so  happy,  she  hastened  away,  for  she 
feared  that  otherwise  Juno  might  harm  her  two  beautiful 
babes.  So  she  took  a  little  one  in  each  arm,  and  again 
set  forth  on  her  wanderings. 

She  came  at  length  to  a  desert  land,  where  there  was 
not  a  blade  of  grass  or  a  flower  to  rest  her  tired  eyes. 
The  hot  sand  burned  her  feet,  and  her  lips  were  parched 
with  thirst.  The  two  babes  in  her  arms  sometimes  seemed 
to  weigh  like  lead,  —  she  was  so  tired  from  walking  all 
day  long.  Yet  her  cloak  was  always  held  so  as  to  shield 
them,  not  herself,  from  the  sun.  The  mother  was  glad  to 
suffer  anything  for  her  children's  sake. 

She  had  been  walking  for  days  and  days,  the  hot  sand 
burning  her  tender  feet,  and  her  throat  dry  and  parched 
for  lack  of  water,  when  suddenly  she  saw  in  the  distance 
a  clump  of  trees,  and  a  glimmer  of  blue  water  amid  the 
green. 

The  hope  of  relief  gave  her  new  strength,  and  she  has- 
tened toward  the  spot.  When  she  came  to  it,  she  found 
a  lake  of  clear,  blue  water.  All  about  it  tall  reeds  were 
growing,  and  some  rough  peasants  were  plucking  them 
and  binding  them  in  sheaves. 

Latona  bent  and  tried  to  reach  the  pure  water  with  her 
lips,  for  both  her  arms  were  burdened  with  the  children. 
But  she  started  up  again,  when  the  men,  in  a  very  rude 
and  unkind  tone,  ordered  her  not  to  drink. 

"  What !  "  said  Latona  in  surprise,  "  surely  you  wijl  not 
forbid  me  to  drink  of  this  pure  water,  which  the  gods  have 
put  here  for  all  to  enjoy !  I  am  weary  from  long  wander- 


36  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

ing  over  the  desert,  and  my  lips  are  parched  with  thirst." 
The  water  looked  so  cool  and  inviting  that  Latona  once 
more  bent  to  drink  of  it. 

But  the  men  only  renewed  their  rude  talk  and  threat- 
ened that,  if  she  did  not  go  away,  they  would  do  her  some 
harm.  Then  Latona  began  to  plead,  with  tears  in  her 
eyes.  "  Surely,  if  you  have  no  pity  for  me,"  she  said, 
"you  cannot  be  so  cruel  to  these  little  children  who 
stretch  out  their  arms  to  you."  And,  as  she  put  aside 
her  cloak,  the  little  boy  and  girl  really  did  stretch  out 
their  tiny  baby  fingers,  as  though  to  beg  these  hard-hearted 
men  to  be  more  gentle. 

But  they  were  very  hard-hearted  indeed,  and  for  answer 
they  began  to  kick  mud  and  stones  into  the  water,  so  that 
in  a  few  moments  the  clear  lake  had  become  a  muddy 
pool,  and  the  water  was  unfit  to  drink. 

Then  Latona  became  very  angry,  and  raising  her  eyes 
to  heaven  she  cried,  "  If  there  is  any  one  to  hear  me,  and 
any  justice  among  the  gods,  let  these  men  live  forever  in 
that  pool ! " 

The  gods  heard  her  prayer,  and  the  men  were  at  once 
changed  into  frogs  ;  and  to  this  day  they  haunt  the  quiet 
pools,  now  sitting  on  the  rocks,  now  leaping  into  the  water 
with  ugly  croaks. 

As  for  Latona,  her  time  of  suffering  was  almost  over. 
The  twin  babes  for  whom  she  had  borne  so  much,  grew 
up  to  repay  her,  as  well  as  children  ever  can  repay  their 
parents. 

Jupiter,  the  god  who  had  sent  them  to  Latona  in  her 
loneliness,  had  given  them  his  own  godlike  nature ;  and 
when  next  we  hear  of  them,  Apollo  is  the  great  god  of  the 
sun  and  of  music,  and  Diana,  his  beautiful  twin  sister,  is 


THE  BROOK  37 

the  goddess  of  the  moon.  So  much  did  they  honor  their 
mother  that  her  lightest  wish  was  a  law  to  them,  and 
nothing  that  she  asked  of  them  was  left  ungranted. 


THE  BROOK 

I  COME  from  haunts  of  coot  and  hern, 

I  make  a  sudden  sally, 
And  sparkle  out  among  the  fern, 

To  bicker  down  a  valley. 

I  chatter  over  stony  ways, 
In  little  sharps  and  trebles, 

I  bubble  into  eddying  bays, 
I  babble  on  the  pebbles. 

I  chatter,  chatter,  as  I  flow 
To  join  the  brimming  river, 

For  men  may  come,  and  men  may  go, 
But  I  go  on  forever. 

I  wind  about,  and  in  and  out, 
With  here  a  blossom  sailing, 

And  here  and  there  a  lusty  trout, 
And  here  and  there  a  grayling. 

And  here  and  there  a  foamy  flake 

Upon  me,  as  I  travel 
With  many  a  silvery  waterbreak 

Above  the  golden  gravel. 

And  draw  them  all  along,  and  flow 
To  join  the  brimming  river, 

For  men  may  come,  and  men  may  go, 
But  I  go  on  forever. 


$8  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

I  steal  by  lawns  and  grassy  plots, 

I  slide  by  hazel-covers; 
I  move  the  sweet  forget-me-nots 

That  grow  for  happy  lovers. 

I  slip,  I  slide,  I  gloom,  I  glance, 
Among  my  skimming  swallows; 

I  make  the  netted  sunbeam  dance 
Against  my  sandy  shallows. 

And  out  again  I  curve  and  flow 

To  join  the  brimming  river, 
For  men  may  come,  and  men  may  go, 

But  I  go  on  forever. 

ALFRED  TENNYSON. 


ECHO    AND    NARCISSUS 

THIS  is  the  story  of  a  maiden  who  came  to  grief  because 
she  talked  too  much,  and  because  she  always  wanted  to 
have  the  last  word.  You  can  find  out  for  yourselves 
whether  or  not  it  is  true,  any  day  when  you  walk  in  the 
woods  or  go  through  a  tunnel.  In  fact,  I  should  not 
wonder  if  most  of  you  have  already  tried  giving  some 
call  when  you  are  passing  under  a  bridge,  in  order  to 
hear  the  queer  little  spirit  that  lives  in  such  places,  and 
takes  delight  in  mockingly  answering  back. 

Poor  Echo  !  Now  she  is  nothing  but  a  voice,  but 
there  was  a  time  when  she  danced  and  sang  in  the  green 
woods  with  the  other  nymphs.  She  had  one  great  fault, 
however,  —  she  was  too  talkative  ;  and  the  worst  of  it 


"Echo  quickly  answered,  'Here'.' 


ECHO  AND  NARCISSUS  41 

was,  she  told  such  interesting  stories  that  her  listeners 
would  forget  how  the  time  was  passing. 

Many  a  time  even  Juno  would  come  down  to  earth  and 
listen  by  the  hour  to  Echo's  delightful  tales.  But  one  day 
she  found  out  that  Echo  amused  her  in  this  way  only  to 
please  Jupiter.  For  Jupiter  sometimes  grew  tired  of  Juno, 
and  wished  to  be  alone. 

Juno  was  very  angry  at  Echo ;  and  she  punished  her 
in  rather  a  queer  way,  by  taking  from  her  the  power  of 
that  tongue  with  which  she  had  been  too  ready.  Poor 
Echo  found  that  she  could  no  longer  speak  ;  she  could 
only  mimic  the  last  words  of  others. 

Now  there  was  a  youth  named  Narcissus,  who  was  as 
beautiful  as  a  sunshiny  day  in  spring,  and  he  was  brave 
and  manly  as  well.  Every  one  who  saw  him  loved  him  ; 
but  he  seemed  to  have  no  heart,  for  he  loved  no  one  but 
himself. 

One  day  he  was  wandering  through  the  forest  with 
some  comrades,  when  he  stopped  to  pluck  a  wild  flower, 
and  lost  sight  of  his  friends.  He  turned  to  take  the 
path  which  he  thought  the  right  one,  and  in  so  doings 
passed  by  the  tall  oak  tree  in  which  Echo  lived. 

The  moment  the  girl  saw  him  she  fell  in  love  with 
him  ;  and  she  followed  him  through  the  woods,  longing 
for  the  power  to  speak  to  him.  But  alas  !  she  could  not 
speak. 

They  went  on  in  this  way  for  some  time,  Narcissus 
parting  the  branches  in  search  of  his  comrades,  and  Echo 
stealing  softly  behind  him,  until  the  boy  suddenly  saw 
that  he  had  lost  his  way  and  called  out,  "  Is  there  any 
one  here?"  Echo,  who  had  stepped  behind  a  tree,  quickly 
answered  "  Here  !  " 


42  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

The  youth  was  very  much  surprised,  for  he  had  thought 
himself  alone  in  the  woods.  He  looked  all  around,  but  not 
seeing  any  one  to  whom  the  voice  could  belong,  he  called, 
"  Come  !  "  whereupon  Echo  likewise  called,  "  Come  !  " 

This  was  bewildering.  He  could  see  no  one,  and  yet 
every  cry  of  his  was  answered,  and  the  voice  seemed  very 
near.  He  went  on  calling  and  questioning,  and  each  time 
Echo  answered  in  his  own  words.  She  did  not  dare  show 
herself,  for  fear  that  he  might  be  angry,  but  you  see  she 
could  not  help  answering. 

At  last  Narcissus,  who  was  getting  very  impatient, 
called,  "  Let  us  come  together  here."  Echo  answered  in 
a  very  glad  tone,  and  stepping  from  behind  the  tree,  ran 
to  meet  him. 

When  she  came  up  to  him,  she  tried  to  throw  her 
arms  around  his  neck,  to  tell  him  her  love  in  that  way ; 
for,  you  know,  the  poor  girl  could  not  tell  it  in  words. 
But  Narcissus  hated  to  have  any  one  show  him  affection ; 
so  he  pushed  her  aside  very  roughly,  and  fled  from  her 
farther  into  the  woods. 

Poor  Echo !  His  unkind  looks  had  hurt  her  sadly,  and 
she  hid  herself  in  the  woods,  and  mourned  and  grieved, 
thinking  of  the  beautiful  youth  who  had  treated  her  so 
rudely.  She  suffered  very  much  and  wept  night  and  day 
and  could  not  touch  any  food ;  so  that  she  grew  pale  and 
thin  and  began  to  waste  away  to  a  shadow,  as  people  say, 
until  at  last  her  body  vanished  altogether,  and  nothing  but 
her  voice  remained. 

Since  that  time  she  lies  hidden  in  the  woods,  and  no 
one  has  ever  seen  so  much  as  a  gleam  of  her  white  arms 
in  the  branches ;  but  her  voice  is  still  heard  among  the 
hills,  answering  to  every  call. 


INVITATION   TO  ECHO  43 


INVITATION   TO   ECHO 

Two  of  us  among  the  daisies 

In  the  meadow  bright  and  still, — 
You,  alone  among  the  mazes 
Of  the  dark  trees  on  the  hill; 
O  sweet  Echo, 
O  fleet  Echo, 

Can  we  not  overtake  you,  following  with  a  will? 

(Ah,  Will ! ) 

'Tis  my  name,  but  much  I  wonder 

That  you,  in  your  hiding  place, 
On  the  shady  hill  or  under, 

Things  you  never  knew  can  trace  ! 
Declare,  mocker, 
O  rare  mocker, 

What  my  sister's  name  is,  else  you're  in  disgrace ! 

(Is  Grace!) 

What  sweet  things  do  you  resemble, — 

Morning  dewdrops,  starry  gleams, 
Flowers  that  in  the  light  wind  tremble, 
Beckonings  of  the  rippled  streams? 
O  dear  playmate, 
Come  near,  playmate ; 

Are  these  fancies  true,  or  naught  at  all  but  dreams? 

(But  dreams !) 

Then  come  down  and  let  us  see  you; 

If  you  cannot  come  to  stay, 
Ask  the  stern  old  hill  to  free  you 
Just  for  half  a  holiday. 
O  glad  Echo, 
O  sad  Echo, 

To  escape  your  prison  can  you  find  no  way  ? 

(No  way  !) 
EDITH  M.  THOMAS. 


44  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 


HOW    NARCISSUS    LOVED    HIS    OWN    IMAGE 

NARCISSUS,  who  was  so  cold  to  poor  Echo,  and  indeed 
to  all  who  loved  him,  at  last  fell  in  love  himself,  and  in  a 
very  strange  way. 

When  Narcissus  was  born,  his  mother  took  him  to  a 
wise  man  who  could  foretell  the  future,  and  asked  whether 
her  boy  would  live  to  manhood.  The  prophet  answered, 
"  If  he  never  recognizes  himself."  At  the  time,  no  one 
understood  the  meaning  of  the  words  ;  but  when  you  have 
read  this  story,  I  think  you  will  see  what  the  wise  man 
meant. 

Narcissus  was  very  fond  of  hunting,  and  he  often 
roamed  through  the  woods  from  morning  till  night,  with 
only  his  bow  and  arrows  for  companions. 

One  day  he  had  been  tracking  the  game  through  the 
forest  for  many  hours,  and  at  last,  worn  out  with  the  heat 
and  the  exercise,  he  came  to  a  shady  spot  in  the  woods, 
where,  hidden  among  the  low  bushes,  there  was  a  little 
spring. 

The  water  was  clear  as  crystal,  and  Narcissus  stooped 
to  drink  of  it ;  but  suddenly  he  paused  in  wonder,  for  re- 
flected in  the  smooth  surface,  was  the  most  beautiful  face 
he  had  ever  seen.  He  looked  at  it  in  ever-growing  sur- 
prise, and  the  more  he*  looked,  the  fairer  did  the  face  seem. 
Narcissus  at  last  had  fallen  in  love  —  but  it  was  with  his 
own  reflection. 

He  spoke  to  the  beautiful  image,  and  the  red  lips  in 
the  water  parted  as  though  they  were  answering  him  ;  but 
no  sound  could  he  hear.  He  smiled,  and  the  two  starry 
eyes  in  the  pool  smiled  back  at  him.  When  he  beckoned, 


NARCISSUS  AND  HIS  IMAGE  45 

the  loved  one  beckoned  too;  and  the  nearer  he  bent  to 
the  water,  the  nearer  to  its  surface  did  the  beautiful  face 
rise. 

When  he  tried  to  touch  it,  it  disappeared  from  view. 
That  was  because,  when  the  water  was  rippled  by  his 
touch,  the  image  became  blurred.  But  when  the  water 
was  still,  the  face  was  again  seen  in  all  its  loveliness. 

Poor  Narcissus !  He,  with  whom  so  many  had  been  in 
love,  was  at  last  in  love  himself,  and  with  a  thing  that  had 
no  form,  or  substance,  —  a  mere  shadow. 

He  lost  all  desire  for  food  or  for  sleep,  and  night  and 
day  he  lay  upon  the  grass,  gazing  at  his  own  image  re- 
flected in  the  water.  When  Apollo  guided  his  morning 
chariot  over  the  hills,  the  face  in  the  pool  seemed  touched 
with  a  golden  light  that  made  it  more  beautiful  than  ever ; 
and  at  night,  when  Diana  drove  her  silver  car  through  the 
heavens,  the  poor  boy  could  scarcely  breathe  for  marveling 
at  the  beauty  of  his  own  face. 

Slowly  he  began  to  pine  away.  The  red  left  his  cheeks 
and  his  body  grew  thinner  and  thinner,  until  at  last  he 
died. 

Echo  had  seen  the  poor  boy's  madness,  and  although 
he  had  treated  her  so  cruelly,  she  felt  only  sorrow  at 
his  trouble.  Whenever  Narcissus,  in  despair,  cried  out, 
"Alas! "  or  "  Woe  is  me!  "  Echo  sorrowfully  repeated  the 
cry.  His  last  words  addressed  to  the  image  in  the  water 
were,  "  Oh  youth,  beloved  in  vain,  farewell !  "  ;  and  Echo 
answered,  "  Farewell !  " 

The  nymphs  of  the  rivers  and  the  wood  nymphs  all 
mourned  for  their  dead  friend.  And  they  prepared  the 
funeral  pile,  for  in  those  days  people  used  to  burn  the 
bodies  of  the  dead. 


46  STORIES  OF  LONG  AG& 

When  all  was  ready,  they  went  with  garlands  to  carry 
him  to  his  bier,  but  the  body  of  the  dead  youth  had  van- 
ished. In  its  stead  there  stood  a  beautiful  flower,  with  a 
bright  golden  center  and  soft,  white  petals,  which  nodded 
to  its  reflection  in  the  pool.  And  to  this  day  the  lovely 
flower,  called  the  narcissus,  is  found  by  quiet  pools,  gazing 
at  its  image  in  the  water. 


A  WEB  AND  A  SPIDER 

IN  an  ancient  city  of  Greece,  there  lived  a  young  girl 
named  Arachne,  whose  parents  had  once  been  very  poor 
and  humble.  Arachne,  however,  brought  wealth  and  com- 
fort into  their  little  cottage,  through  her  great  skill  in 
spinning  and  embroidering. 

Such  beautiful  things  did  she  fashion  with  her  wool, 
and  so  graceful  did  she  look  as  she  worked  with  her  spin- 
dle, that  great  lords  and  ladies  came  from  every  part  of 
the  land  to  see  her  at  her  work.  Her  name  was  famous 
throughout  Greece,  and  princes  and  merchants  paid  her 
great  prices  for  her  wonderful  embroidery. 

So,  as  I  said,  wealth  and  comfort  took  the  place  of 
poverty  in  Arachne's  home,  and  the  parents  blessed  their 
daughter,  and  all  of  them  lived  very  happily.  Thus  it 
might  have  gone  on  until  they  died,  had  not  Arachne's 
head  been  turned  by  the  praises  that  were  showered  upon 
her  from  all  sides.  She  became  so  vain  about  her  work 
that  she  could  think  of  nothing  but  how  wonderful  she 
was ;  and  one  day  she  boasted  that,  though  she  was  only 
a  humble  girl,  she  was  far  greater  in  her  skill  than  the 


'So  graceful  she  looked  as  sne  worked  with  her  spindle.' 


A   WEB  AND  A  SPIDER  49 

goddess  Minerva.  Minerva,  you  remember,  was  the  god- 
dess of  wisdom  and  of  war ;  but  in  her  spare  moments 
she  amused  herself  by  doing  just  such  work  as  had  made 
Arachne  famous,  —  embroidery  in  wool,  or  tapestry,  as  it 
was  called. 

Now  there  was  no  fault  that  displeased  the  gods  more 
than  conceit  ;  so  when  Minerva  heard  of  the  girl's  bold 
speech,  she  was  much  astonished,  and  thought  she  would 
visit  Arachne  to  see  what  she  meant  by  her  boast. 

Accordingly,  she  took  on  the  form  of  an  old,  gray- 
haired  woman,  and  leaning  on  her  staff,  as  though  too  fee- 
ble to  walk  erect,  she  came  into  the  little  room  where 
Arachne  sat  spinning.  She  joined  the  circle  that  sur- 
rounded the  maiden  at  her  work,  and  listened  to  the  girl's 
boastful  claim  that  she  could  outdo  Minerva  herself  in  skill. 

Then  the  old  woman  spoke.  "My  daughter,"  she  said, 
laying  her  hand  on  Arachne's  shoulder,  "  listen  to  the 
advice  of  an  old  woman  who  has  had  much  experience  in 
life.  Be  content  to  reign  as  queen  of  your  art  among 
women,  but  do  not  compare  yourself  with  the  gods.  Ask 
pardon  for  the  foolish  words  you  have  just  spoken.  I 
promise  you  that  Minerva  will  grant  it." 

But  the  young  girl  only  looked  cross  and  ugly,  as  she 
answered  in  a  very  churlish  tone,  "  You  are  an  old  woman 
and  you  speak  like  one.  Let  Minerva  come  and  try  her 
skill  with  mine,  and  I  will  prove  my  words.  She  is  afraid 
of  the  test,  else  why  does  she  not  come  ? " 

Then  Minerva  dropped  her  staff  and  cried,  "  Lo !  she 
is  come !  "  and  she  took  on  her  true  shape  and  showed 
herself  in  all  her  godlike  splendor.  The  bystanders  fell 
upon  the  ground  and  worshiped  her.  But  Arachne,  fool- 
ish Arachne,  held  her  head  high,  and  did  not  show  the 


5O  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

least  fear  or  awe ;  on  the  contrary,  she  again  asked  Mi- 
nerva to  enter  into  a  trial  of  skill. 

Without  more  words,  the  goddess  and  the  humble  girl 
took  their  stand,  each  before  an  empty  loom,  and  began 
to  work  in  silence.  The  group  in  the  back  of  the  room 
watched,  breathless  with  wonder  and  awe. 

In  the  center  of  Minerva's  loom  there  soon  appeared 
figures  telling  the  story  of  a  famous  contest  in  which 
the  gods  had  taken  part ;  and  into  each  of  the  four  cor- 
ners she  wove  a  picture  of  the  fate  that  had  overtaken 
daring  mortals  who  had  opposed  the  gods.  These  were 
meant  as  a  warning  to  Arachne. 

But  Arachne  worked  on  at  her  loom,  with  the  color 
glowing  in  her  cheeks  and  her  breath  coming  very  fast. 
And  such  beauty  as  grew  under  her  skillful  fingers  !  You 
could  almost  see  the  birds  fly  and  hear  the  lapping  of 
the  waves  on  the  shore,  and  the  clouds  seemed  floating 
through  real  air.  But  the  stories  that  she  pictured  were 
all  chosen  to  show  that  even  the  gods  could  sometimes 
make  mistakes. 

When  she  laid  down  her  spindle,  Minerva,  in  spite  of 
her  anger  at  the  girl's  boldness,  was  forced  to  admit  that 
Arachne  had  won  the  contest.  But  this  only  made  her 
wrath  the  greater ;  and  when  Arachne  saw  the  look  of 
anger  in  Minerva's  face,  she  suddenly  felt  how  foolish  and 
wrong  she  had  been.  It  was  too  late  now  for  repentance. 
The  goddess  seized  the  beautiful  web,  and  tore  it  into 
shreds.  Then  she  raised  her  shuttle  and  struck  Arachne 
three  times  on  the  head. 

Arachne  was  too  proud  to  submit  to  such  treatment. 
She  seized  a  rope  which  lay  near  her  on  the  floor,  and 
would  have  hung  herself,  to  end  her  shame  and  sorrow. 


TWIST   YE,    TWME   YE  51 

But  Minerva  held  her  back  and  cried,  "  Nay,  you  shall 
live,  wicked  girl ;  but  henceforth  you  shall  hang  from  a 
thread,  and  all  your  race  shall  bear  the  same  punishment 
forever." 

In  an  instant  Arachne's  hair  fell  off,  and  her  face  be- 
came so  small  that  her  body  looked  very  large  next  to  it, 
though  in  reality  it,  too,  had  diminished  in  size.  Her  fin- 
gers were  changed  into  ugly  spider's  legs,  and,  hanging 
from  her  thread,  she  spun  and  spun  forever. 

If  you  can  find  a  dusty  old  corner  in  an  attic,  or  if  you 
will  look  closely  along  your  garden  wall,  perhaps  you  will 
see,  if  not  Arachne  herself,  at  least  one  of  her  race,  spin- 
ning and  spinning  away  at  a  web,  as  a  punishment  for 
that  foolish  girl's  vanity. 


"TWIST  YE,  TWINE  YE" 

TWIST  ye,  twine  ye !  even  so 
Mingle  shades  of  joy  and  woe, 
Hope  and  fear  and  peace  and  strife, 
In  the  thread  of  human  life. 

Passions  wild  and  follies  vain, 
Pleasures  soon  exchanged  for  pain  ; 
Doubt  and  jealousy  and  fear, 
In  the  magic  dance  appear. 

Now  they  wax  and  now  they  dwindle, 
Whirling  with  the  whirling  spindle. 
Twist  ye,  twine  ye !  even  so, 
Mingle  human  bliss  and  woe. 

WALTER  SCOTT. 


52  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 


THE    STORY    OF   THE    LAUREL 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  was  a  great,  great  flood  over 
all  the  earth.  Some  wicked  people  had  angered  the  gods, 
and  Jupiter  sent  all  the  waters  of  the  earth  and  sky  to 
cover  the  world. 

He  did  not  want  the  waters  to  dry  up  until  all  the 
people  were  dead,  so  he  shut  fast  in  their  caverns  all  the 
winds  except  the  south  wind,  which  was  sometimes  called 
the  messenger  of  rain.  And  Jupiter  sent  this  messenger 
of  his  to  wander  over  all  the  earth. 

A  mighty  figure  of  ruin  he  was,  as  he  swept  along, 
emptying  the  clouds  as  he  passed.  His  face  was  cov- 
ered with  a  veil  like  the  night,  his  beard  was  loaded  with 
showers,  and  his  wings  and  the  folds  of  his  cloak  were 
dripping  wet.  The  gods  of  the  ocean  and  the  river  gods 
all  helped  him  in  his  work ;  till,  in  a  short  time,  the  whole 
earth  was  out  of  sight  under  a  vast  sea,  and  all  the  wicked 
people  were  drowned. 

Then  Jupiter  was  sorry  to  see  the  earth  looking  so 
empty  and  deserted,  so  he  called  home  the  south  wind  and 
set  the  other  winds  free.  The  north  wind  and  the  east 
wind  and  the  gentle  west  wind  swept  over  the  earth  until 
it  was  again  dry  and  green.  After  that  Jupiter  sent  a 
new  race  of  better  men  and  women  to  live  upon  it. 

But,  strange  to  say,  the  water  had  brought  forth  many 
queer  new  animals  ;  and  among  them  there  was  a  huge 
monster,  so  ugly  that  I  will  not  even  try  to  tell  you  what 
it  looked  like,  and  so  wicked  and  cruel  that  the  people 
for  miles  around  the  swampy  land  where  it  dwelt  lived 
in  constant  terror. 


THE  STORY  OF   THE  LAUREL  53 

No  one  dared  go  near  the  hideous  creature,  until,  one 
day,  the  archer  Apollo  came  with  his  glittering  arrows, 
and  slew  it,  after  a  fierce  battle.  The  people  were  then 
very  happy ;  and  you  may  be  sure  that  they  made  a  great 
ado  over  Apollo,  so  that  he  left  the  country  feeling  very 
proud  of  himself. 

As  he  was  going  along,  whom  should  he  meet  but  the 
little  god  Cupid,  armed  with  his  bow  and  arrows  ?  Cupid, 
you  remember,  was  the  young  god  of  love,  sometimes 
called  god  of  the  bow ;  and  I  promised  to  tell  you  how 
wonderful  his  arrows  were. 

Some  of  them  were  sharp-pointed  and  made  of  shining 
gold,  and  whoever  was  pierced  by  one  of  these  at  once  fell 
deeply  in  love.  But  the  other  arrows  were  blunt  and  made 
of  dull  lead,  and,  strange  to  say,  they  made  people  hate 
one  another.  You  will  hear,  in  a  moment,  what  use  Cupid 
made  of  these  curious  arrows  of  his. 

When  Apollo  met  Cupid  thus  armed,  he  began  to  taunt 
him.  "  What  have  you  to  do  with  the  arrow  ? "  he  cried, 
in  a  boastful  tone.  "That  is  my  weapon.  I  have  just 
proved  it  by  slaying  the  terrible  monster.  Come,  Cupid, 
give  up  the  bow  which  rightfully  belongs  to  me." 

Now,  Cupid  was  a  very  quick-tempered  little  god,  and 
he  cried  in  a  passion,  "  Though  your  arrow  may  pierce  all 
other  things,  my  arrow  can  wound  you."  Then  he  flew 
off  in  a  very  bad  humor,  and  tried  to  think  of  some  way 
in  which  he  could  make  Apollo  feel  which  of  them  was 
the  better  marksman. 

By  and  by  he  came  to  a  grove  in  which  a  beautiful 
nymph,  Daphne,  was  wandering.  This  was  just  what  he 
wanted.  He  shot  the  arrow  of  lead  into  her  heart,  and 
the  girl  felt  a  cold  shiver  run  through  her.  She  looked 


54  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

up  to  see  what  had  happened,  and  caught  a  glimpse  of 
Apollo's  golden  garments  above  the  tree-tops. 

Cupid  saw  him  at  the  same  instant,  and,  quick  as  a 
flash,  he  planted  a  golden  arrow  in  Apollo's  heart.  Then 
he  flew  away,  satisfied. 

The  golden  arrow  did  its  work  only  too  well.  For  no 
sooner  had  the  sun  god  caught  a  glimpse  of  the  beautiful 
nymph  than  he  fell  deeply  in  love  with  her ;  and  just  as 
quickly,  Daphne  had  been  made  to  hate  Apollo,  and  she 
turned  to  flee  from  him  into  the  woods. 

Apollo  followed  in  hot  haste,  calling  to  her  not  to  be 
afraid  and  not  to  run  so  fast,  for  fear  she  might  hurt  her- 
self on  the  thorns  and  brambles  ;  and  at  last  he  cried, 
"  Do  not  try  to  run  from  me.  I  love  you,  and  will  do  you 
no  harm.  I  am  the  great  sun  god  Apollo." 

But  Daphne  was  only  the  more  terrified  at  these  words, 
and  fled  more  swiftly,  while  Apollo  still  followed.  He 
had  almost  reached  her  side,  when  she  stretched  out  her 
arms  to  her  father,  the  god  of  a  river  along  whose  banks 
she  was  fleeing.  "  Oh  father,"  she  cried,  "  help  me  !  help 
me !  Either  let  the  earth  open  and  swallow  me,  or  change 
this  form  of  mine  so  that  Apollo  will  not  love  me." 

Hardly  had  she  finished  her  prayer,  when  her  limbs  grew 
heavy,  and  a  thin  bark  began  to  cover  her  skin.  Her  hair 
changed  into  green  leaves,  her  arms  to  slender  branches, 
and  her  feet,  which  had  borne  her  along  so  swiftly,  were 
now  rooted  to  the  ground.  Her  father  had  answered  her 
prayer,  and  had  changed  her  into  a  laurel  tree. 

When  Apollo  saw  that  his  beautiful  Daphne  had  be- 
come a  tree,  he  wept  and  threw  his  arms  about  the  newly- 
formed  bark  and  said,  "  Since  you  eannot  be  my  wife,  fair 
Daphne,  at  least  you  shall  be  my  tree,  my  laurel.  Your 


I  am  the  great  sun  god  Apollo." 


CUPID  57 

foliage  shall  be  used  to  crown  the  heads  of  victors,  and 
shall  be  green  alike  in  summer  and  in  winter."  And  so 
it  came  to  pass,  —  the  laurel,  Apollo's  emblem  from  that 
day  on,  became  the  sign  of  honor  and  triumph. 

If  now  you  should  ever  hear  the  phrase  "  crowned  with 
laurel,"  you  will  know  what  it  means,  if  only  you  remem- 
ber the  story  of  Apollo  and  Daphne. 


CUPID 

CUPID  once  upon  a  bed 

Of  roses  laid  his  weary  head ; 

Luckless  urchin,  not  to  see 

Within  the  leaves  a  slumbering  bee. 

The  bee  awaked  —  with  anger  wild 
The  bee  awaked,  and  stung  the  child. 
Loud  and  piteous  are  his  cries  ; 
To  Venus  quick  he  runs,  he  flies. 

"  Oh,  mother !     I  am  wounded  through,  — 
I  die  with  pain  —  in  sooth  I  do ! 
Stung  by  some  little  angry  thing, 
Some  serpent  on  a  tiny  wing. 

A  bee  it  was  —  for  once,  I  know, 
I  heard  a  rustic  call  it  so." 
Thus  he  spoke,  and  she  the  while 
Heard  him  with  a  soothing  smile. 

Then  said,  "  My  infant,  if  so  much 
Thou  feel'st  the  little  wild  bee's  touch, 
How  must  the  heart,  ah,  Cupid,  be, 
The  hapless  heart  that's  stung  by  thee?" 

THOMAS  MOORE. 


58  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 


THE    STORY    OF    A    SWEET    SINGER 

ONCE  there  lived  in  Greece  a  wonderful  musician  named 
Orpheus.  When  he  played  his  lyre,  the  trees  were  so 
charmed  by  his  music  that  they  followed  him  as  he  went 
along  ;  and  the  lifeless  rocks  became  living  and  trembled 
at  the  beauty  of  his  song.  And  he  could  so  charm  people 
that  they  would  forget  all  their  bad  thoughts,  and  become 
for  a  while  as  lovely  as  the  sounds  they  heard. 

Now  Orpheus  had  a  fair  young  wife,  Eurydice  ;  and 
much  as  he  loved  his  music,  she  was  still  more  dear  to 
him.  She  was  as  beautiful  as  the  dewy  morning ;  and  it 
did  not  take  Orpheus'  music  to  make  her  good,  for  she 
had  never  had  a  thought  that  was  not  pure  and  lovely. 

One  day,  Eurydice  was  walking  in  the  fields  with  some 
young  girls,  gathering  flowers  as  she  went  along,  when 
suddenly  from  under  a  cluster  of  leaves,  a  serpent  darted 
out  with  a  loud  "  hiss,"  and  before  Eurydice  could  step 
aside,  the  snake  had  bitten  her  in  the  foot. 

The  weeping  girls  carried  her  home  to  Orpheus,  who 
did  all  in  his  power  to  restore  his  dear  wife  ;  but,  after  a 
few  hours  of  suffering,  she  died. 

Orpheus'  grief  was  terrible  to  see.  He  took  up  his 
beloved  lyre,  but  its  charm  for  him  was  gone.  He  drew 
from  it  such  low,  sad  strains,  that  even  the  rocks  and  the 
trees  were  moved  to  tears  for  his  sorrow.  At  last  he  could 
bear  his  loneliness  no  longer,  and  he  determined  to  go  to 
the  Lower  World  to  seek  Eurydice,  —  a  thing  that  few 
human  beings  had  ever  tried  to  do.  Hades,  you  remem- 
ber, was  the  land  of  the  dead,  ruled  by  King  Pluto  and 
his  young  wife  Proserpine. 


A  SWEET  SINGER  59 

To  this  gloomy  place,  the  bright,  happy  Eurydice  had 
been  brought  by  the  boatman  Charon,  whose  business  it 
was  to  take  the  souls  of  the  dead  over  the  dark  River  of 
Death  to  Hades  ;  and  hither  Orpheus  went  to  seek  her. 

Taking  his  lyre  with  him,  he  went  along,  full  of  hope, 
until  he  came  to  the  black  River  of  Death.  Charon  at 
first  refused  to  carry  him  across  ;  but  Orpheus  played  for 
him  so  sweetly  that  the  stern  boatman  was  melted  to  tears, 
and  at  last  agreed  to  take  the  player  across  the  river. 

But  at  the  entrance  to  Hades,  there  was  a  fierce,  horrible 
dog,  with  three  enormous  heads,  three  pairs  of  fiery  eyes, 
and  three  mouths,  bristling  with  ugly  fangs. 

When  Orpheus  came  to  the  gate,  the  dog  began  to 
snarl  and  show  his  teeth  as  an  ugly  dog  will,  and  started 
to  spring  upon  this  unbidden  visitor  to  the  Lower  World. 
But,  quick  as  a  flash,  Orpheus  seized  his  lyre  and  drew 
from  it  such  beautiful  music  that  the  dog  crouched  down 
at  his  feet,  and  licked  the  hands  he  had  been  ready  to 
bite. 

So  Orpheus  passed  through  the  gateway,  and  after  fol- 
lowing many  dark  and  winding  passages,  came  to  the 
throne  where  the  king  and  queen  were  seated  in  state. 

Before  Pluto  could  express  his  wonder  at  seeing  a  liv- 
ing being  in  his  underground  palace,  Orpheus  fell  on  his 
knees,  and,  fingering  the  strings  of  his  lyre,  told  the  sad 
story  of  his  love  and  loss  in  a  song  so  beautiful  and 
touching  that  both  Pluto  and  Proserpine  wept  to  hear 
him.  When  he  had  finished,  Pluto  granted  his  prayer 
and  gave  him  leave  to  lead  Eurydice  back  with  him  to 
earth. 

He  made  one  condition,  however,  —  that  Orpheus  must 
not  look  back  at  his  wife  until  they  had  passed  the  bounds 


60  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

of  Hades.  To  this  Orpheus  gladly  agreed,  and  so,  after 
many  kind  parting  words,  he  started  to  return  through 
those  gloomy  passages,  Eurydice  silently  following. 

They  had  nearly  reached  the  entrance,  when  Orpheus 
had  a  sudden  fear  that  Eurydice  might  have  lagged  behind. 
Before  he  could  think  of  what  he  was  doing,  he  turned 
his  head  quickly  to  see  whether  she  was  still  following. 
But  alas  !  he  caught  only  a  glimpse  of  her,  as,  with  her 
arms  stretched  toward  him  and  her  lips  speaking  a  last 
farewell,  she  sank  back  into  that  Hades  from  which  his 
love  and  his  wonderful  gift  of  music  had  so  nearly  saved 
her. 

In  vain  Orpheus  tried  to  get  back  into  Hades ;  and 
after  sitting  for  seven  days  on  the  bank  of  the  river, 
without  touching  food  of  any  kind  or  sleeping  for  an  in- 
stant, he  sadly  returned  to  the  green  earth. 

He  went  up  on  a  high  mountain,  and  there  he  lived 
with  only  the  birds  and  the  trees  and  the  wild  animals ;  for, 
since  he  could  not  have  Eurydice,  he  cared  for  no  other 
companions.  But  the  birds  and  the  wild  beasts  and  the 
flowers  loved  him  dearly,  and  tried  to  show  their  gratitude 
for  the  sweet  music  he  made  for  them.  They  did,  indeed, 
comfort  him,  and  he  lived  for  a  long  time  in  this  sorrow- 
ful quiet. 

So  time  passed  on,  until  one  day,  as  Orpheus  was  walk- 
ing on  the  mountain,  he  met  a  band  of  dancing  women 
who  were  singing  gay  songs  as  they  tripped  along.  Or- 
pheus, to  whom  the  sight  of  such  careless  mirth  was  very 
painful,  would  have  turned  aside  ;  but  as  soon  as  the 
women  saw  his  lyre,  they  came  up  to  him  and  ordered 
him,  in  a  rough  manner,  to  play  them  some  gay  music. 

Now  Orpheus,  as  you  know,  could  think  only  of  sad 


ORPHEUS   WITH  HIS   LUTE  6l 

things  since  Eurydice  had  gone  from  him,  and  he  felt  that 
he  could  not  play  merry  tunes.  But  when  he  refused,  the 
women  flew  into  a  rage,  and  fell  upon  him,  and  put  him 
to  death  with  stones  and  arrows.  Cruel,  mad  women  they 
were,  and  their  king  afterwards  punished  them  severely 
for  their  heartless  action. 

They  cast  the  singer's  body  into  the  weeping  river, 
His  last  words  as  he  floated  down  the  stream  were, 
"  Eurydice !  Eurydice  !  "  ;  and  the  rocks  and  the  trees 
echoed  back  the  cry,  "  Eurydice  !  Eurydice  !  " 

The  trees  and  the  rocks  and  the  birds  and  the  flowers 
mourned  the  loss  of  the  sweet  singer,  and  the  wood 
nymphs  and  the  water  nymphs,  who  had  often  listened 
in  rapture  to  his  music,  grew  pale  and  thin  with  grieving 
over  his  death. 

But  Orpheus  himself,  with  a  happy  heart,  crossed  the 
dark  River  of  Death  into  the  realm  of  Hades.  This  time 
Charon  gladly  ferried  him  across,  and  the  fierce  dog 
wagged  his  tail  in  friendly  greeting.  At  the  entrance 
gate  stood  Eurydice,  waiting  to  welcome  him  ;  and  he 
rushed  forward  to  meet  his  dear  wife  and  put  his  arms 
about  her,  happy  in  the  thought  that  they  would  never 
again  be  parted. 


ORPHEUS    WITH    HIS    LUTE 

ORPHEUS  with  his  lute  made  trees, 
And  the  mountain  tops  that  freeze, 

Bow  themselves  when  he  did  sing; 
To  his  music,  plants  and  flowers 
Ever  sprung,  as  sun  and  showers 

There  had  made  a  lasting  spring. 


62  STORIES   OF  LONG  AGO 

Everything  that  heard  him  play, 
Even  the  billows  of  the  sea, 
Hung  their  heads,  and  then  lay  by. 
In  sweet  music  is  such  art ; 
Killing  care  and  grief  of  heart. 

WILLIAM   SHAKSPEARE. 


EURYDICE 

HE  came  to  call  me  back  from  death 

To  the  bright  world  above  ; 
I  hear  him  yet  with  trembling  breath 

Low  calling,  "  Oh,  sweet  love  ! 
Come  back,   the  earth  is  just  as  fair, 
The  flowers,  the  open  skies  are  there, 

Come  back  to  life  and  love  1 " 

Oh,  all  my  heart  went  out  to  him, 

And  the  sweet  air  above ; 
With  happy  tears  my  eyes  were  dim ; 

I  called  him,    "  Oh,  sweet  love ! 
I  come,  for  thou  art  all  to  me ; 
Go  forth,  and  I  will  follow  thee, 

Right  back  to  life  and  love." 

I  followed  through  the  cavern  black, 

I  saw  the  blue  above. 
Some  terror  turned  him  to  look  back; 

I  heard  him  wail,  "  Oh,  love, 
What  have  I  done !  what  have  I  done ! " 
And  then  I  saw  no  more  the  sun, 

And  lost  were  life  and  love. 

FRANCIS  W.  BOURDILLON. 


A  BOLD  HUNTER  63 


THE    QUEEN    HUNTRESS    AND    A    BOLD 
HUNTER 

THE  story  I  am  going  to  tell  you  is  of  that  beautiful 
maiden  Diana,  goddess  of  the  moon  and  of  the  chase. 

Every  evening,  when  Apollo,  her  twin  brother,  sank 
from  sight  in  his  golden  sun  chariot,  she  arose  and  guided 
her  silver  car  across  the  heavens.  But  when  the  dawn 
came,  and  Apollo  began  his  daily  journey  around  the 
world,  Diana  left  her  silvery  chariot  in  the  sky  and  came 
down  to  earth. 

Clad  in  her  short  hunting  garments,  her  shining  quiver 
of  arrows  slung  over  one  shoulder,  she  spent  the  day  in  the 
green  woods,  enjoying  the  pleasures  of  the  chase.  She 
was  followed  by  a  train  of  young  girls,  who  hunted  and 
rested  with  her.  But  only  the  fairest  and  best  maidens 
were  thought  worthy  of  the  great  honor  of  hunting  with 
Diana. 

When  they  were  tired  of  the  sport,  they  would  seek  a 
shady  place  where,  perhaps,  a  cool  brook  sped  along  over 
the  stones  ;  and  there  they  would  bathe  their  hot  limbs, 
and  drink  the  cooling  water,  and  lie  on  the  soft  grass 
under  the  trees.  No  one  ever  dared  to  enter  these  quiet, 
hidden  groves,  for  they  were  sacred  to  Diana  and  her 
nymphs. 

Actaeon  was  a  youth  who  also  was  very  fond  of  hunt- 
ing. More  than  all  else,  he  loved  to  follow  the  deer  ; 
and  he  had  a  fine  pack  of  hounds  that  never  failed  to 
track  the  game  when  once  they  had  caught  scent  of  the 
trail. 

One  day,  Actaeon  had  been  out  hunting  for  many  hours. 


64  STORIES   OF  LONG  AGO 

He  was  tired  and  thirsty,  and  he  looked  about  for  some 
spot  in  which  to  rest.  Suddenly  he  heard  the  sound  of 
running  water,  and,  eager  to  quench  his  thirst,  parted  the 
branches  and  stepped  into  an  open  space  beyond. 

But  what  did  he  see  ?  Lying  about  on  the  grass  were 
all  the  fair  huntresses  with  their  queen  in  their  midst.  At 
the  moment  when  Actaeon  parted  the  branches,  Diana 
was  stepping  into  the  rippling  water.  At  sight  of  him,  she 
paused,  flushed  with  anger  and  surprise.  "  Bold  mortal," 
she  cried,,  "darest  thou  enter  my  secret  hiding  places? 
Never  shalt  thou  go  back  and  say  to  men  that  thou  hast 
seen  Diana  at  her  midday  rest." 

She  thereupon  sprinkled  a  few  drops  of  water  in  his 
face,  and  then  something  very  strange  happened.  Poor 
A.ctaeon  had  been  so  bewildered,  at  sight  of  Diana's 
beauty  and  at  her  anger,  that  he  had  stood  motionless 
and  silent,  rooted  to  the  spot.  But  now  he  tried  to  speak, 
and  found  he  could  not  utter  a  word.  The  angry  god- 
dess had  changed  his  form  into  that  of  a  deer,  the  animal 
which  he  and  his  faithful  hounds  had  so  often  hunted. 

In  terror  and  dismay,  he  looked  at  his  new  body,  which 
was  so  strange  and  yet  so  familiar  to  him.  At  that  mo- 
ment he  heard,  in  the  distance,  the  baying  of  his  own 
dogs,  coming  to  join  him.  Ah  !  he  must  hide  from  them, 
for  they  would  not  know  their  master  hidden  in  that  body 
of  a  stag. 

He  turned  to  flee,  but  it  was  too  late.  One  of  the 
hounds  had  caught  sight  of  his  antlers  and  had  given  the 
cry ;  and  the  next  minute,  the  whole  pack  of  eager  crea- 
tures was  at  his  back. 

Poor  Actaeon!  He  fled -in  terror,  but  although  his 
swift  feet  carried  him  along  like  the  wind,  his  antlers 


'Clad  in  her  hunting  skirt  with  her  quiver  of  arrows." 


THE  HUNTER'S  SONG  67 

caught  in  the  trees  and  bushes  and  held  him  back.  At 
last,  tired  out  by  the  struggle,  he  sank  to  the  ground. 
An  instant  later  the  pack  fell  upon  him,  and  the  young 
hunter  was  torn  to  pieces  by  his  own  hounds. 


THE    HUNTER'S    SONG 

HARK,  hark !     Who  calleth  the  maiden  Morn 

.prom  her  sleep  in  the  woods  and  the  stubble  corn? 

The  horn  —  the  horn ! 
The  merry,   sweet  ring  of  the  hunter's  horn. 

Now  through  the  copse  where  the  fox  is  found, 
And  over  the  stream,  at  a  mighty  bound, 
And  over  the  high  lands  and  over  the  low, 
O'er  furrows,  o'er  meadows,  the  hunters  go! 
Away !  as  a  hawk  flies  full  at  his  prey- 
So  flieth  the  hunter  —  away,  away  ! 

Hark,  hark  !  —  What  sound  on  the  wind  is  borne  ? 
'Tis  the  conquering  voice  of  the  hunter's  horn : 

The  horn  —  the  horn  ! 
The  merry,  bold  voice  of  the  hunter's  horn. 

Sound,  sound  the  horn !     To  the  hunter  good 
What's  the  gully  deep  or.  the  roaring  flood? 
Right  over  he  bounds,   as  the  wild  stag  bounds, 
At  the  heels  of  his  swift,  sure,  silent  hounds. 

Hark,  hark  !  —  Now  home,  and  dream  till  morn 
Of  the  bold,  sweet  sound  of  the  hunter's  horn ! 

The  horn  —  the  horn  ! 
Oh,  the  sound  of  all  sounds  is  the  hunter's  horn ! 

BARRY  CORNWALL 


68  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 


THE    STORY    OF    PERSEUS 

THERE  was  once  a  princess  named  Danae,  and  she  had 
a  little  baby  boy,  whom  she  called  Perseus.  The  little 
boy's  father  was  far  away,  and  Darfae  had  no  one  to  take 
care  of  her  and  her  child. 

One  day,  some  cruel  people  put  Perseus  and  his  mother 
into  a  boat,  and  set  them  adrift  on  the  great,  wide  sea. 
They  floated  about  for  many  days,  and  Danae  held  her 
little  boy  close,  and  sang  him  sweet  lullabies,  to  keep  him 
from  crying  at  the  great  waves  that  every  now  and  then 
swept  over  the  little  boat. 

She  thought  that  they  both  would  die ;  but  somehow 
the  frail  little  bark  did  not  upset,  and  one  day  a  large 
wave  carried  it  upon  an  island,  where  it  rested  on  the 
sloping  shore.  There  some  kind  people  found  them,  and 
gave  Danae  and  her  little  boy  a  home.  The  mother  and 
son  lived  there  for  many  years,  until  Perseus  was  no  longer 
a  little  baby  boy,  but  a  brave,  fearless,  young  man. 

Now  the  king  of  the  island  was  a  wicked  and  cruel 
man,  who  for  some  reason  hated  Danae  and  Perseus,  and 
wished  to  get  rid  of  them. 

So  he  planned  some  means  of  getting  Perseus  out  of 
the  way,  for  the  wicked  king  knew  that  if  the  boy  were 
gone  he  could  easily  do  what  he  liked  with  the  mother. 

At  last  he  thought  of  an  adventure  that  would  please 
Perseus,  and,  at  the  same  time,  be  so  dangerous  that  the 
youth,  he  felt  sure,  would  never  come  back  to  his  home. 

On  an  island,  in  the  middle  of  the  ocean,  on  whose 
shores  the  fierce  waves  beat  all  day  long,  there  lived  three 
terrible  sisters  known  as  the  Gorgons.  They  were  half 


THE  STORY  OF  PERSEUS  69 

women  and  half  dragons.  They  had  beautiful  faces,  but 
their  bodies  were  so  hideous  that  one  could  think  of  them 
only  as  ugly  monsters. 

Instead  of  skin,  they  had  large  scales ;  their  hands 
were  made  of  brass ;  but  most  horrible  of  all,  in  place 
of  hair  on  their  heads,  there  writhed  hundreds  and  hun- 
dreds of  poisonous  snakes,  with  open  mouths  and  hissing 
tongues. 

Not  very  pleasant  creatures  to  meet,  you  may  well 
say.  With  one  blow  of  their  tails  or  of  their  brazen  hands, 
they  could  have  crushed  poor  Perseus  to  atoms.  But 
worse  than  that,  worse  even  than  the  deadly  bite  of  the 
snakes,  was  the  power  of  their  fierce  eyes ;  for  whoever 
looked  a  Gorgon  in  the  face,  was  immediately  turned  to 
stone ! 

Of  the  three,  the  most  terrible  was  Medusa ;  and  the 
task  that  the  king  had  thought  of  giving  Perseus  was 
nothing  less  than  cutting  off  Medusa's  head,  snakes  and 
all. 

Since  merely  looking  at  the  Gorgon  would  turn  Perseus 
to  stone,  and  he  could  not  very  well  cut  off  her  head  with- 
out looking,  the  king  was  pretty  safe  in  thinking  that  Per- 
seus would  never  return  to  the  island. 

So  he  sent  for  the  boy,  and  when  he  stood  before  him, 
began  to  praise  his  boldness  and  courage,  of  which,  he 
said,"  he  had  heard  so  much.  Perseus,  of  course,  was  flat- 
tered by  these  words  of  praise,  and  replied,  "  Indeed,  O 
King,  I  think  there  is  no  task  from  which  I  would  shrink 
in  fear." 

The  king  was  delighted  and  said,  "  If  I  thought  that, 
my  boy,  I  would  let  you  undertake  a  task  that  I  am  sav- 
ing for  the  bravest  man  in  my  kingdom." 


JO  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

"And  do  you  think  me  worthy  of  this  nonor?  "  cried 
Perseus,  in  great  delight. 

"You  may  try  it,  if  you  like,"  answered  the  king.  "It 
is  to  bring  me  the  head  of  Medusa,  with  its  snaky  black 
locks." 

Perseus  gladly  agreed,  and  left  the  palace.  Oh,  how 
the  wicked  king  chuckled  over  the  success  of  his  plot ! 
In  seeming  to  do  the  boy  an  honor,  he  thought  he  was 
really  sending  him  to  his  death. 

Now  after  poor  Perseus  left  the  palace,  he  began  to 
think  over  his  promise,  and  somehow  the  plan  did  not 
seem  nearly  so  pleasant  nor  so  easy  as  when  he  was  talk- 
ing with  the  king.  The  more  he  thought  of  it,  the  less 
he  liked  the  idea.  In  the  excitement  of  the  moment,  he 
had  promised  to  do  something  that  would  surely  cost  him 
his  life. 

When  he  had  passed  the  gates  of  the  city,  he  sat  down 
under  a  tree  by  the  roadside  and  began  to  think  very 
soberly;  but  the  more  he  thought,  the  more  hopeless  did 
his  task  seem. 

Perseus  was  a  very  brave  youth  ;  but  the  bravest  per- 
son in  the  world  would  rather  be  alive  than  to  be  turned 
to  stone,  and  the  thought  of  what  would  probably  happen 
to  him  made  him  so  sad  that  he  could  not  keep  the  tears 
from  his  eyes. 

Suddenly  a  voice  said,  "Perseus,  why  are  you  weep- 
ing ? "  Perseus  raised  his  head  in  surprise,  and  saw  a 
mischievous-looking  little  fellow,  with  an  odd-shaped  cap, 
strange,  winged  shoes,  and  a  staff,  wreathed  with  serpents, 
on  which  he  leaned  as  he  spoke.  It  was  no  other  than 
the  swift-footed  god  Mercury,  but  this  Perseus  did  not 
know. 


LULLABY  71 

Stih  tnere  was  something  so  kind  and  comforting  in 
the  tone  in  which  the  queer-looking  stranger  asked  the 
question,  that,  almost  .before  he  knew  it,  Perseus  was 
telling  him  the  whole  story. 

When  he  had  finished,  Mercury  sat  silent  for  a  few 
moments,  lost  in  deep  thought,  and  then  said,  "  My  boy, 
you  have  undertaken  a  dangerous  task,  yet  with  my  help 
you  may  succeed.  But  first  of  all,  you  must  promise  to  do 
in  all  things  just  as  I  tell  you."  Perseus  promised,  and  in 
the  next  story  you  will  hear  whether  or  not  he  succeeded. 


LULLABY 

SWEET  and  low,  sweet  and  low, 

Wind  of  the  western  sea  — 
Low,  low,  breathe  and  blow, 

Wind  of  the  western  sea. 
Over  the  rolling  waters  go, 
Come  from  the  dying  moon  and  blow, 

Blow  him  again  to  me 
While  my  little  one,  while  my  pretty  one,  sleeps. 

Sleep  and  rest,  sleep  and  rest, 

Father  will  come  to  thee  soon ; 
Rest,  rest,  on  mother's  breast, 

Father  will  come  to  thee  soon  : 
Father  will  come  to  his  babe  in  the  nest, 
Silver  sails  all  out  of  the  west 

Under  the  silver  moon. 

Sleep,  my  little  one ;  sleep,  my  pretty  one,  sleep. 

ALFRED  TENNYSON 


72  STORIES   OF  LONG  AGO 


HOW    PERSEUS   WENT   IN    QUEST    OF 
MEDUSA'S    HEAD 

Now  all  the  gods  and  goddesses  had  watched  over 
Perseus  ever  since  his  birth,  and  when  Mercury  came  to 
them  and  asked  them  to  help  the  youth,  they  readily 
consented. 

Pluto  lent  him  his  wonderful  helmet,  which  made  the 
wearer  invisible  ;  Minerva  gave  her  shield  which  shone 
like  gold,  and  was  so  bright  that  it  reflected  things  as  in 
a  mirror ;  and  Mercury  himself  gave  his  sharp,  crooked 
sword  and  his  winged  shoes  with  which  Perseus  could  fly 
more  swiftly  than  the  swiftest  bird. 

All  that  Perseus  now  had  to  do  was  to  find  out  the 
way  to  Medusa's  island  home,  and  the  only  people  in  the 
whole  world  who  knew  where  that  was  were  three  sisters 
who  lived  together  in  a  cave. 

They  were  queer  creatures,  and  the  strangest  thing 
about  them  was  that  instead  of  having  two  eyes  each, 
as  you  and  I  have,  there  was  but  one  eye  for  all  three  of 
them. 

They  took  turns  in  using  that  single  eye ;  so  that  while 
one  of  them  had  the  eye,  the  other  two  could  see  nothing 
at  all ;  and  while  they  were  passing  the  eye  from  one  to 
another,  all  three  sisters  were,  for  the  moment,  blind. 

But  such  an  eye  as  that  one  was !  —  worth  much  more 
than  any  other  six  eyes  put  together.  With  it  the  sisters 
could  see  what  was  going  on  in  the  farthest  parts  of  the 
earth,  and  that  was  how  they  knew  the  way  to  Medusa's 
home. 

To  this  cave,  in  which  the  three  sisters  lived,  Mercury 


PERSEUS  AND  MEDUSA  73 

led  Perseus,  and  after  giving  him  some  parting  advice, 
hid  himself  in  the  grove  near  by,  while  Perseus  stood  just 
outside  the  cave,  behind  a  bush,  and  waited. 

By  and  by  one  of  the  women,  with  the  wonderful  eye 
in  her  forehead,  came  to  the  door  of  the  cave.  As  she  led 
her  sisters  by  the  hand,  she  told  them  of  everything  that 
she  was  seeing  with  the  eye,  —  strange  things  that  were 
happening  in  countries  far  away. 

They  were  interested  for  a  while ;  but  at  length,  one  of 
them  grew  impatient  and  said,  "  Sister,  it  is  my  turn  to 
use  the  eye  now.  Give  it  to  me."  And  the  third  sister 
said  quickly,  "  No,  that  is  not  true.  It  is  my  turn."  And 
the  middle  one,  who  had  the  eye,  cried  out,  "  I  pray  you, 
sisters,  let  me  keep  the  eye  a  little  longer.  I  think  I  see 
some  one  behind  that  thick  bush." 

When  Perseus  heard  these  words,  he  trembled  in  his 
winged  shoes.  However,  he  need  not  have  been  afraid, 
for  the  sisters  fell  to  quarreling  about  the  eye,  and  at  last, 
the  one  who  had  it  was  forced  to  take  it  out  of  her  fore- 
head. 

Now,  at  that  instant,  all  three  of  the  sisters  were  blind, 
and  Perseus,  seeing  his  chance,  darted  out  and  seized  the 
eye.  Then  began  a  dreadful  hubbub,  each  one  of  the 
three  insisting  that  the  other  had  taken  the  eye,  and  I  do 
not  know  how  it  all  ^rould  have  ended,  had  not  Perseus 
spoken. 

"My  good  women,"  he  said,  "do  not  be  frightened. 
The  eye  is  safe.  I  hold  it  in  my  hand  this  very  moment." 

With  a  cry  of  anger  the  three  sisters  darted  in  the  di- 
rection from  which  the  voice  came.  But  Perseus  was  too 
quick  for  them.  On  his  winged  feet  he  rose  high  in  the 
air,  and  then,  from  a  safe  distance,  called  out,  "  You  shall 


74  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

not  have  your  eye  back,  my  friends,  unless  you  tell  me 
exactly  how  to  find  the  island  on  which  Medusa  lives." 

This  was  a  secret  with  which  the  sisters  would  not  have 
parted  if  they  could  have  helped  themselves  ;  but  the  loss 
of  their  precious  eye  was  a  thing  too  terrible  to  think  of. 
So,  after  a  few  minutes,  they  told  Perseus  all  he  wanted 
to  know,  and  he  set  their  hearts  at  rest  by  clapping  the  eye 
into  the  forehead  of  the  sister  standing  nearest  him. 

Then  he  flew  back  swiftly  to  the  grove  where  Mercury 
was  waiting,  and  thanked  him  for  all  his  help,  and,  after 
bidding  him  farewell,  started  out  on  his  errand. 

He  flew  over  many  lands  and  seas,  until  at  last  he  came 
to  the  island  where  the  terrible  Gorgons  lived.  He  dared 
not  look  down,  even  for  an  instant,  for  fear  of  being  turned 
to  stone.  But  Minerva's  bright  shield  served  as  a  mirror, 
and,  reflected  in  it,  he  saw  the  three  monsters  lying  fast 
asleep  on  the  shore  beneath  him. 

He  took  his  sharp,  crooked  sword,  and,  fixing  his  eyes 
on  Medusa's  image  in  the  shield,  he  darted  down.  With 
one  thrust,  he  cut  off  the  head  of  the  sleeping  Gorgon, 
and  then  flew  up  into  the  air  again,  holding  the  horrid 
head  behind  him. 

The  hissing  of  the  snakes  on  Medusa's  head  awakened 
her  two  sisters,  and  they  started  up  to  follow  Perseus  ;  but 
on  account  of  Pluto's  helmet  they  could  not  see  him,  and 
he  escaped  with  the  head  of  snaky-locked  Medusa. 

Back  over  land  and  sea  he  flew,  and  he  had  many 
strange  adventures  by  the  way.  When  he  reached  the 
island  where  his  mother  lived,  he  went  straight  to  their 
little  cottage.  He  laid  aside  the  shield,  the  helmet,  the 
sword,  and  the  winged  shoes ;  and,  after  wrapping  the 
head  of  Medusa  in  a  cloth,  went  to  greet  his  mother. 


1 

f 
-i 


PERSEUS  AND  MEDUSA  77 

She  was  overjoyed  to  see  her  son,  for  she  had  long 
since  decided  that  he  must  be  dead.  You  see,  it  had 
taken  a  long,  long  time  to  reach  the  island  where  Medusa 
lived  ;  for  it  was  so  far  away  that  no  one  but  the  three 
sisters  with  their  wonderful  eye  could  tell  how  to  reach  it. 

Perseus  told  his  mother  all  that  had  happened  to  him, 
and,  above  all,  how  he  had  met  fair  Andromeda,  which  is 
the  story  I  am  going  to  tell  you  next.  In  return,  he 
heard  how  cruelly  the  king  had  treated  Danae  during  her 
son's  absence ;  and  vowed  that  he  would  take  revenge. 

The  next  morning  he  went  to  the  palace.  The  king 
was  more  surprised  than  pleased  to  see  Perseus,  for  he, 
too,  had  thought  him  dead.  "  Aha,  Perseus  !  "  he  cried, 
"  so  you  have  come  back  without  doing  what  you  promised 
to  do.  Your  courage  is  not  so  great  as  you  would  have 
us  believe." 

"Nay,  your  majesty,"  answered  Perseus,  "I  have  slain 
Medusa,  and  have  brought  you  back  her  head." 

"That  you  must  prove  by  showing  us  the  head,"  said 
the  king,  with  a  sneer;  for,  of  course,  he  did  not  believe 
Perseus. 

"  Since  your  majesty  insists,  behold  the  head  !  "  Perseus 
cried ;  and  drawing  it  from  the  bag  at  his  side,  he  held  it 
aloft  in  all  its  horrid  beauty.  The  king  gazed  at  it  an  in- 
stant, with  the  sneer  still  on  his  face,  and  then  sat  motion- 
less, —  turned  to  stone  in  all  his  royal  state. 

When  the  people  heard  what  had  happened,  there  was 
great  rejoicing,  for  they  had  all  feared  and  hated  the  cruel 
king.  Perseus  chose  a  better  ruler  for  them,- under  whom 
they  lived  in  peace  and  happiness. 

Perseus  knew  that  he  owed  his  success  to  the  help 
which  Mercury  and  the  other  gods  had  given  him,  and 


78  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

he  never  forgot  the  debt  he  owed  them.  The  head  of 
Medusa  he  gave  to  Minerva.  She  was  much  pleased  with 
the  gift,  and  placed  it  in  the  center  of  her  bright  shield. 
From  that  time  on,  wherever  Minerva  was  seen  in  battle, 
there  glistened  her  shield  with  the  head  of  Medusa,  turn- 
ing to  stone  all  who  gazed  at  its  horrid  beauty. 


HOW    PERSEUS    WON   A   WIFE 

THIS  is  the  story  of  the  happy  rescue  of  Andromeda 
by  Perseus,  which  I  promised  to  tell  you  next.  It  all  hap- 
pened after  Perseus  had  slain  Medusa,  and  when  he  was 
hurrying  back  to  his  island  home. 

In  an  island  near  Greece,  there  lived  a  beautiful 
woman  whose  name  was  Cassiopeia.  Long  after  the  time 
I  am  talking  of,  she  was  placed  among  the  stars,  and  on 
a  starry  night  any  one  will  show  you  Cassiopeia's  Chair, 
brightly  shining  in  the  heavens. 

But  at. the  time  of  my  story,  she  still  lived  on  earth, 
and,  as  I  said,  she  was  very  beautiful.  She  was  also  very 
vain  of  her  beauty,  and  one  day  boasted  that  she  was 
fairer  than  any  of  the  sea  nymphs.  Now  the  sea  nymphs 
were  very  fair  indeed,  and  it  angered  them  to  have  Cassi- 
opeia compare  herself  with  them. 

People  in  those  days  seem  to  have  had  very  cruel  ways 
of  showing  their  anger.  The  nymphs  sent  a  sea  serpent 
to  the  island  where  Cassiopeia  lived,  and  he  did  so  much 
harm  that  everybody  was  in  despair.  At  length  the  peo- 
ple went  to  their  temple  to  consult  the  oracle. 


HOW  PERSEUS  WON  A  WIFE  79 

This  was  an  old  custom  among  the  people  of  long  ago. 
In  many  cities  there  were  beautiful  temples  built  to  the 
gods  and  goddesses  ;  and  in  these  temples  dwelt  priests 
who  were  supposed  to  be  the  oracles  of  the  gods,  that 
is,  through  them  the  gods  spoke  to  human  beings.  If 
any  one  was  in  doubt  as  to  what  he  should  do  in  time  of 
trouble,  or  wanted  to  know  something  that  was  to  happen 
in  the  future,  he  would  go  to  one  of  these  oracles,  and 
offer  up  a  sacrifice  to  the  god,  in  return  for  which  the 
oracle  would  utter  words  of  warning  or  of  advice. 

When  the  men  of  this  place  went  to  their  oracle  to 
inquire  why  such  trouble  had  come  upon  them,  the  answer 
was,  "  Because  of  the  vanity  of  Cassiopeia.  If  she  will 
give  up  her  daughter  Andromeda  to  the  serpent,  the  sea 
nymphs  will  be  satisfied,  and  the  sea  serpent  shall  trouble 
you  no  longer." 

Great  was  the  grief  of  the  people  at  these  words.  An- 
dromeda was  so  gentle  and  good  that  everybody  loved  her. 
Many  thought  her  even  more  beautiful  than  her  mother, 
for  whose  vanity  she  was  to  die. 

And  Cassiopeia  herself?  She  would  not  believe  the 
answer  of  the  oracle.  She  rushed  to  the  temple,  and  fell  on 
her  knees,  and  offered  to  make  any  sacrifice  if  the  oracle 
would  take  back  that  cruel  message,  —  that  Andromeda 
must  be  given  as  a  peace  offering  to  the  sea  serpent. 

But  the  oracle  repeated  only  the  same  heartless  answer, 
-  "  If  you  wish  your  town  and  all  the  people  to  be  saved 
from  ruin,  you  must  give  up  your  daughter." 

Then  Cassiopeia  went  sadly  home  and  locked  herself  in 
her  room ;  for  she  could  not  bear  to  look  her  child  in  the 
face.  Ah,  how  bitterly  she  regretted  the  vanity  that  had 
led  to  all  the  trouble,  and  how  she  hated  that  beautiful 


80  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

face  of  hers  which  had  formerly  given  her  so  much 
pleasure  ! 

Meanwhile,  the  sorrowing  people  led  Andromeda  to  the 
seashore,  and  bound  her  with  chains  to  an  overhanging 
rock.  Then  they  stood  sadly  around,  waiting  for  the  com- 
ing of  the  monster  who  was  to  devour  the  fairest  and  best 
of  all  their  young  maidens. 

Andromeda  herself  pretended  to  be  very  brave,  so  as 
to  lessen  her  poor  mother's  grief ;  but  in  truth  she  was 
much  frightened,  and  she  shuddered  at  the  thought  of  the 
serpent's  cruel  jaws. 

All  were  watching  anxiously,  when,  suddenly,  some- 
thing black  was  seen  above  the  water,  afar  off,  —  and 
they  knew  that  it  was  the  dreaded  creature.  •  Nearer  and 
nearer  came  the  serpent,  lashing  the  water  with  its  tail 
and  snorting  in  a  most  horrible  manner.  Now  it  had 
almost  reached  the  rock  to  which  Andromeda  was  chained. 
The  poor  girl  gave  one  terrified  shriek ;  and  all  the  people 
covered  their  eyes  with  their  hands,  for  they  could  not 
bear  to  see  what  was  to  happen. 

All  at  once  something  like  a  little  black  cloud  came 
darting  through  the  air,  a  crooked  sword  flashed  an  instant 
in  the  light,  and  then  was  buried  in  the  monster's  back. 

Perseus,  flying  above  the  spot,  had  seen,  at  a  glance, 
the  girl  bound  to  the  rock  and  the  hideous  creature  raising 
itself  to  attack  her.  Quick  as  a  flash,  he  had  darted  down, 
and  was  now  fighting  a  fierce  battle  with  the  monster. 

The  people  watched  the  long  combat  with  eager  eyes. 
When  Perseus  at  last  pierced  the  serpent's  heart  and  the 
ugly  creature  floated  lifeless  on  the  water,  such  a  shout 
went  up  from  the  shore  that  the  hills  around  rang  with 
the  echo. 


HOW  PERSEUS   WON  A   WIFE  8 1 

Then  Perseus  unfastened  Andromeda's  chains  and  led 
her  to  her  parents.  Such  happy  tears  as  the  people  shed ! 
And  such  rejoicing  and  praises  of  Perseus  on  all  sides  ! 

The  hero  became  Cassiopeia's  guest,  and,  after  a  few 
days,  when  he  had  seen  that  the  rescued  girl  was  as  good 
and  lovable  as  she  was  fair,  he  asked  for  her  hand  in 
marriage.  As  for  Andromeda,  she  had  loved  Perseus  from 
the  moment  she  saw  his  crooked  sword  flash  above  the 
sea  serpent's  head,  and  so  she  gladly  consented  to  be  his 
wife. 

The  girl's  parents  now  began  to  prepare  for  the  wed- 
ding, and  the  whole  village  was  invited  to  be  present  at 
the  feast.  Now  there  was  an  old  man  of  whom  Androm- 
eda's parents  were  very  much  afraid.  Some  time  before, 
he  had  asked  for  their  daughter  as  his  wife,  and  the  par- 
ents had  been  afraid  to  say  no. 

But  the  girl  hated  this  old  man,  and  that  was  another 
reason  why  she  loved  Perseus,  who  had  saved  her  not  only 
from  the  sea  serpent,  but  from  the  man  whom  she  dreaded 
quite  as  much. 

The  wedding  day  dawned  at  last,  bright  and  sunny, 
and  with  great  pomp  and  rejoicing  Perseus  and  Andro- 
meda were  married.  The  people  flocked  to  the  tables  that 
were  spread  with  many  good  things,  and  the  feast  began. 

When  the  merriment  was  at  its  height,  suddenly  the 
wide  doors  swung  back,  and  the  startled  people  saw,  stand- 
ing in  the  opening,  an  ugly,  scowling,  little  man,  holding 
a  sword,  and  followed  by  a  band  of  armed  soldiers. 

There  was  silence  in  the  room,  until  at  length  the  old 
man  spoke  :  "  Perseus,  I  have  come  to  claim  my  promised 
bride,  Andromeda.  Give  her  to  me  peaceably,  or  else  I 
and  my  soldiers  will  kill  you  all." 


82  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

Andromeda  was  very  much  frightened  and  clung  to 
Perseus  in  terror.  Her  husband  laid  his  right  hand  on  a 
bag  which  he  wore  at  his  side  and  said,  "  The  one  you  call 
your  bride,  sir,  is  my  wife,  and  no  power  of  yours  can  take 
her  from  me." 

"We  shall  see,"  was  the  old  man's  answer;  and  he 
started  toward  Perseus. 

But  in  the  middle  of  the  room  he  came  to  a  sudden 
stop,  and  stood  there  motionless,  his  sword  raised  to 
strike  ;  for  Perseus  had  lifted  the  terrible  Gorgon's  head, 
and  instantly  the  old  man  was  turned  to  stone,  just  as  he 
stood. 

When  his  followers  saw  what  had  happened  to  their 
master,  they  turned  and  fled  from  the  house ;  and  the 
merrymaking  went  on  as  though  it  had  never  been  inter- 
rupted. 

After  that  Perseus  took  his  wife  to  his  island  home, 
and  there  they  spent  many  happy  days  together  in  his 
mother's  little  cottage. 


THE    STORY    OF    IO 

IN  a  certain  part  of  Greece,  there  was  a  beautiful 
grove,  bordered  on  all  sides  by  denser  woods.  Through 
it  there  flowed  a  restless  river,  dashing  over  rocks  and 
scattering  its  spray,  like  fine  mist,  over  all  the  trees  on 
its  banks. 

The  god  of  the  river  had  one  child,  a  girl  named  lo, 
and  there  was  nothing  she  liked  better  than  to  wander  in 
the  grove  by  the  side  of  her  father's  stream. 


"Perseus  led  his  Wife  to  his  Island  Home." 


THE  STORY  OF  10  85 

One  day,  when  Jupiter  had  come  down  to  earth,  he  met 
.To  in  the  woods  and  began  to  talk  to  her.  And  he  found 
her  so  lovable  that  he  came  again  and  again,  and  spent 
many  a  pleasant  hour  wandering  with  her  along  the  banks 
of  the  stream.  lo  did  not  know  who  Jupiter  was,  for  he 
came  disguised  as  a  boy ;  and  she  thought  him  only  a 
pleasant  companion  for  her  walks. 

But  Juno  hated  lo  ;  for,  as  you  remember,  I  have  told 
you  what  a  jealous  queen  she  was,  and  she  could  not  bear 
to  have  Jupiter  care  for  any  one  besides  herself.  So  one 
day,  when  he  had  been  away  from  home  for  many  hours, 
she  suddenly  made  up  her  mind  to  go  down  to  earth  and 
see  the  maiden  of  whom  he  was  so  fond.  Her  heart  was 
filled  with  bitter  feelings  toward  lo,  and  as  she  entered 
the  grove,  her  frown  was  so  dark  that  it  seemed  almost  to 
hide  the  sunlight. 

I  have  told  you  that  the  gods  knew  everything.  So, 
in  some  way,  Jupiter  felt  Juno's  wrath  before  she  came 
into  the  grove ;  and  fearing  that  she  might  harm  his  com- 
panion, quick  as  a  flash,  he  changed  lo  into  a  white  heifer. 
When  Juno  came  to  the  side  of  the  river,  all  that  she  saw 
was  her  husband  in  his  own  true  form  and  the  white  cow 
nibbling  the  grass  at  his  side. 

But  she  knew  that  it  was  lo,  and  she  went  up  to  her 
side,  and  stroked  her  glossy  neck,  and  then,  turning  to 
Jupiter,  begged  him  to  give  her  "the  cow  as  a  present. 
What  could  Jupiter  do  ?  He  could  not  refuse  his  wife 
such  a  trifle,  and  so  he  had  to  say  yes,  although  it  was 
much  against  his  will. 

As  Juno  led  lo  away,  she  said  to  herself,  "  Now  that  I 
have  you,  I  will  take  good  care  to  keep  you."  So  she  set 
one  of  her  servants,  Argus,  to  watch  the  cow.  And  a 


86  STORIES  OF  LONG   AGO 

very  good  watchman  Argus  made ;  for  he  had  a  hundred 
eyes,  and  no  matter  how  tired  he  was,  he  never  closed 
more  than  half  of  them  at  one  time.  If  you  or  1  had 
fifty  sharp  eyes  watching  us  day  and  night,  we  should  find 
it  hard  to  do  anything  they  did  not  see. 

Never  for  a  moment  was  lo  left  unguarded.  At  night 
she  was  tied  to  a  tree,  but  during  the  day  she  could  wan- 
der about  as  she  pleased.  The  poor  girl  did  not  quite 
know  what  had  happened  to  her.  Instead  of  the  food  to 
which  she  was  accustomed,  she  had  to  eat  leaves  and 
grass ;  she  slept  on  the  ground,  and  drank  from  the  running 
brooks.  When  she  tried  to  stretch  forth  her  arms  to  ask 
pity  of  Argus,  she  found,  to  her  surprise,  that  she  had  no 
arms ;  and  instead  of  the  words  she  meant  to  speak,  she 
heard  only  a  strange  "  moo  "  which  came  from  her  own  lips. 

She  was  frightened  and  hastened  to  the  banks  of  the 
river  where  she  had  so  often  walked  with  her  boy  com- 
panion. When  she  saw  her  horns  reflected  in  the  clear 
water,  her  terror  grew  still  greater.  The  water  nymphs, 
her  former  companions,  did  not  recognize  her;  and  even 
her  father  only  patted  her  neck  and  plucked  some  fresh 
grass  for  her. 

But  that  was  too  much  for  the  poor  girl,  —  not  to  have 
her  own  father  know  her !  She  could  not  speak  to  him, 
but  with  her  foot  she  traced  her  story  in  the  sand.  When 
he  read  the  sad  tale,  her  father  wept  aloud,  and,  throwing 
his  arms  about  his  daughter's  neck,  gave  way  to  his  grief. 

Meanwhile,  Argus  faithfully  kept  watch,  and  saw  all 
that  had  passed  between  father  and  daughter.  He  now 
thought  it  time  to  separate  them,  so  he  led  his  charge 
away  to  a  distant  pasture,  and  seated  himself  on  the  top 
of  a  hill,  from  which  he  could  see  all  that  happened. 


THE  STORY  OF  IO  87 

But  Jupiter  had  not  forgotten  lo,  and  he  wished  to 
help  her  if  he  could;  so  he  called  his  son  Mercury,  the 
messenger  of  the  gods,  and  ordered  him  to  kill  Argus. 

Mercury  flew  swiftly  to  earth,  and  there  put  on  the  dress 
of  a  shepherd  boy,  using  his  wonderful  wand  as  a  staff. 
As  he  went  along,  he  gathered  the  stray  sheep  that 
crossed  his  path,  and  when  he  came  near  to  the  hill  where 
Argus  was  watching,  he  began  to  play  on  a  pipe  of  reeds. 

When  Argus  heard  the  sweet  sounds  of  the  pipe,  he 
was  pleased,  and  called  to  Mercury,  "  Hail  stranger  !  Come 
share  this  stone  with  me  ;  here  are  rich  pastures  for  your 
flocks,  and  shade  such  as  shepherds  love." 

Mercury  seated  himself  on  the  hillside,  and  tried  to  put 
Argus  to  sleep  by  ceaseless  talking  and  playing ;  but  the 
watchman  never  closed  more  than  half  his  eyes.  So  they 
had  been  sitting  for  a  long  time,  when  at  last  Argus  asked 
the  shepherd  where  his  musical  pipe  had  come  from,  and 
then  Mercury  slowly  told  him  the  story  : 

"  Once  upon  a  time,  there  lived  in  a  forest  a  nymph 
called  Syrinx.  She  was  graceful  and  nimble  and  fleet  of 
foot,  and  she  led  the  wood  gods,  or  satyrs,  as  they  were 
called,  many  a  race  through  the  woods. 

"  Now  it  happened  that  Pan,  the  god  of  the  shepherds 
and  chief  of  the  satyrs,  saw  her  one  day,  as  she  was  pass- 
ing through  the  grove.  He  came  up  to  speak  to  her,  but 
she  was  frightened  at  his  goat's  legs  and  his  queer,  furry 
ears,  and  fled  from  him  in  terror.  He  followed,  but  she 
ran  so  swiftly  that  he  could  not  overtake  her. 

"  At  last  she  came  to  a  stream,  and  here  she  prayed 
for  help,  to  her  sisters,  the  water  nymphs.  They  heard 
her  and  drew  her  down  into  the  stream,  and  a  moment 
later  a  clump  of  reeds  grew  in  the  spot  where  she  had 


88  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

vanished.  When  Pan  stretched  out  his  arm  toward  Syrinx, 
he  found  himself  grasping,  instead,  the  reeds  that  grew  on 
the  marshy  banks.  Then  he  gave  a  deep  sigh,  and  his 
breath  among  the  reeds  made  a  soft,  murmuring  sound, 
like  music.  Pan  was  so  charmed  by  the  sweet  tone,  that 
he  fastened  some  of  the  hollow  reeds  together  with  wax, 
and  thus  made  a  musical  pipe,  which  he  named  Syrinx,  in 
memory  of  the  vanished  nymph." 

When  Mercury  finished  his  tale,  which  he  had  told  at 
great  length  and  in  a  sleepy  tone,  he  saw,  to  his  delight, 
that  at  last  Argus  was  sound  asleep,  with  all  his  eyes  closed. 
With  his  magic  wand,  he  made  the  slumber  sounder,  and 
then  cut  off  the  head  with  its  hundred  starry  eyes. 

Juno  grieved  sadly  when  she  heard  of  the  death  of  her 
favorite,  and  she  set  his  eyes  in  the  tail  of  her  own  bird, 
the  peacock,  where  they  shine  in  splendor  to  this  day. 
But  alas !  the  queen  blamed  lo  for  all  her  trouble,  and,  to 
punish  her,  sent  a  large  gadfly  to  torment  her.  The  fly 
worried  the  poor  cow  day  and  night,  and  bit  her  and  stung 
her,  until  lo  was  almost  beside  herself  with  pain. 

She  wandered  from  one  country  to  another  trying  in 
vain  to  rid  herself  of  the  fly.  At  last  she  came  to  the  land 
of  Egypt.  There,  tired  out  with  her  long  travels,  she  lay 
down  by  the  side  of  the  river  Nile,  and  tried  with  groans 
and  pitiful  cries  to  ask  relief  of  the  gods. 

Jupiter  could  no  longer  bear  to  see  her  suffering  ;  so 
he  begged  Juno  to  take  pity  on  lo,  and  promised  never 
again  to  speak  to  the  maiden,  if  the  queen  would  set  her 
free.  Juno  herself  was  moved  with  pity,  and  restored  lo 
to  her  own  shape.  The  people  of  the  land  found  her  by 
the  side  of  the  river  Nile,  and  thought  her  so  fair  and 
good  that  they  made  her  their  queen. 


SCWG    TO  PAN  89 

She  lived  happily  for  many  years,  until  she  grew  old 
and  died.  Then  the  people  carved  a  great  statue  of  the 
queen,  and  placed  it  in  their  temple ;  and  they  called  the 
statue  Isis.  Hundreds  of  years  after  lo  was  dead,  the  peo- 
ple of  Egypt  still  came  and  laid  their  flowers  and  other 
gifts  at  the  foot  of  the  statue  of  Isis,  to  show  how  much 
they  loved  their  beautiful  queen. 


SONG   TO   PAN 

ALL  ye  woods  and  trees  and  bowers, 
All  ye  virtues  and  ye  powers 
That  inhabit  in  the  lakes, 
In  the  pleasant  springs  or  brakes, 

Move  your  feet 

To  our  sound, 

Whilst  we  greet 

All  this  ground,  * 

With  his  honor  and  his  name 
That  defends  our  flocks  from  blame. 

He  is  great  and  he  is  just, 
He  is  ever  good  and  must 
Thus  be  honored.     Daffodillies, 
Roses,  pinks,  and  loved  lilies, 
Let  us  fling, 
Whilst  we  sing, 
Ever  holy, 
Ever  holy, 

Ever  honored,  ever  young, 
Thus  great  Pan  is  ever  sung. 

BEAUMONT  AND  FLETCHER. 


90  STORIES  OF  LONG   AGO 


HOW    A    MOTHER'S    PRIDE    WAS    HUMBLED 

THERE  was  once  a  great  city  called  Thebes,  and  the 
king  and  queen  who  ruled  it  had  fourteen  children,  — 
seven  brave,  strong  sons  and  as  many  daughters.  The 
queen,  Niobe,  had  much  to  make  her  happy,  —  wealth, 
power,  beautiful  things  of  all  kinds ;  but  her  greatest  hap- 
piness was  in  her  children.  How  she  loved  them  !  She 
would  play  with  them,  and  tell  them  stories,  and  dry  away 
their  tears  with  her  kisses,  and  she  was  with  them  when- 
ever she  could  steal  away  from  the  many  things  that  kept 
her  busy. 

Thebes,  you  must  know,  was  a  very  great  city  indeed, 
and  there  were  many  troublesome  questions  for  the  king 
and  queen  to  decide,  if  they  wished  to  rule  it  well.  But 
no  matter  how  perplexed  or  tired  the  queen  was  with 
these  worries  of  her  kingdom,  the  sound  of  her  children's 
laughter  or  the  touch  of  their  little  hands  would  drive 
away  all  care  from  her  heart,  and  leave  her  as  happy  as 
though  she,  too,  were  a  child. 

Niobe's  people  did  not  love  her  so  much  as  they  feared 
her  ;  for  although  she  was  gentle  and  tender  and  loving  in 
her  own  home,  when  she  went  out  to  walk  in  the  city, 
dressed  in  her  rich  robes,  she  looked  very  haughty  and 
proud,  and  she  always  wanted  every  one  to  bow  down  to 
her  and  say  "  How  great  is  Niobe ! " 

Now  every  spring  there  was  a  festival  held  in  Thebes, 
in  honor  of  Latona,  the  mother  of  the  beautiful  twin 
gods,  Apollo  and  Diana.  And  one  year,  when,  as  usual, 
the  women  of  the  city  hastened  to  the  temple,  with 
garlands  of  flowers  to  offer  to  the  great  mother,  Niobe 


A  MOTHER'S  PRIDE  91 

came  last  of  all,  dressed  in  a  beautiful  gown  embroidered 
with  gold.  Very  tall  and  proud  she  looked  as  she  walked 
along,  and,  at  the  gates  of  the  temple,  all  the  women 
turned  and  bowed  low  to  their  queen. 

Niobe  raised  her  hand  to  command  silence,  and  then 
said,  in  a  haughty  tone,  "You  women  of  Thebes,  where- 
fore do  you  worship  Latona,  whom  you  have  never  seen, 
when  here  I  stand  before  you  with  all  my  wealth  and 
power  ?  Am  I  not  far  greater  than  Latona  ?  I  am  a  queen, 
and  she  is  but  a  humble  woman.  She  has  only  two  chil- 
dren, and  I  have  seven  times  that  number,  each  one  of  them 
more  lovely  than  Apollo  or  Diana,  whom  you  honor. 

"  I  am  far  greater  than  Latona ;  for  if  all  my  wealth 
and  power  were  taken  from  me,  I  should  still  have  my 
children,  seven  times  the  number  of  hers.  And  even 
should  fortune  take  one  half  of  them  from  me,  still  would 
I  be  greater  than  Latona.  Turn  from  the  altar,  women  of 
Thebes,  and  cast  away  your  wreaths.  Me,  and  me  only, 
should  you  worship,  for  I  am  greater  than  Latona." 

At  these  words  the  frightened  women  cast  down  their 
wreaths  and  went  silently  from  the  temple. 

It  happened  that  Latona  had  come  to  the  top  of  the 
mountain  overlooking  the  city  of  Thebes,  to  see  the  festi- 
val in  her  honor  ;  for  there  had  been  so  much  sorrow  in 
her  life  that  she  took  all  the  joy  that  was  within  her 
reach.  And  it  was  always  joy  to  her  to  hear  the  hymns 
sung  in  honor  of  the  two  great  twins  and  their  mother. 

She  heard  the  queen's  boastful  words,  and  hastened  to 
find  Apollo  and  Diana.  She  told  them  that  Niobe  had 
dared  to  compare  herself  with  their  mother,  that  she' had 
called  her  children  greater  than  the  gods,  and  had  boasted 
that  fortune  could  not  harm  her. 


92  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

When  Diana  and  Apollo  saw  their  mother's  anger,  they 
tried  to  quiet  her,  and  promised  to  punish  the  queen  and 
to  humble  her  pride.  As  you  remember,  nothing  angered 
the  gods  so  much  as  boastful  ness  and  pride.  So,  veiled 
in  clouds  that  hid  their  glory,  the  twin  brother  and  sister 
went  down  to  Thebes,  to  avenge  the  insult  to  their  mother. 

The  seven  princes  were  in  the  fields,  mounted  on  their 
fiery  horses,  chasing  one  another  around  the  plain  with 
merry  laughter.  There  Apollo  found  them,  and  let  fly  an 
arrow  which  pierced  the  eldest  through  the  heart  ;  and 
then  he  shot  another  and  another,  until  the  seven  boys 
lay  lifeless  on  the  plain. 

The  bad  news  traveled  quickly  to  the  royal  palace,  and 
Niobe,  almost  wild  with  grief,  rushed  out,  bareheaded,  with 
her  daughters  close  behind  her.  When  she  reached  the 
plain,  and  saw  the  awful  sight,  she  fell  upon  the  ground 
with  cries  of  anguish. 

But  her  pride  was  not  yet  humbled,  for,  raising  her 
arms  toward  heaven,  she  cried,  "  You  have  taken  revenge, 
most  cruel  Latona,  and  think  you  have  broken  my  heart. 
Yet  I  am  still  greater  and  richer  than  you,  for  I  have 
seven  children  left,  and  you  have  only  two." 

Now  Apollo  and  Diana,  on  seeing  Niobe's  terrible 
grief,  felt  almost  sorry  for  their  deed,  and  thought  she 
had  been  punished  enough.  But  when  she  spoke  these 
words  of  scorn  against  their  mother,  their  anger  blazed 
forth  afresh,  and  Diana  seized  her  bow  and  shot  her  deadly 
arrows,  one  after  another. 

As  Niobe  saw  her  daughters  falling  about  her,  she 
seized  the  youngest  and  tried  to  hide  her  in  her  cloak, 
crying,  "  Leave  me  but  this  one,  ye  gods,  spare  me  this 
last  and  youngest  one  ! "  But  the  fatal  arrow  had  already 


'Spare  me  this  last  and  youngest  one,'  she  cried." 


CHILDREN  95 

been  loosed,  and  as  the  words  left  the  mother's  lips',  the 
last  of  her  children  fell  dead  at  her  feet. 

Then  the  childless,  humbled  woman  sat  down  upon 
the  plain  among  her  dead,  and  gazed  about  her  in  silent 
grief.  And  thus  she  sat,  day  after  day,  and  never  moved 
nor  spoke.  Her  grief  was  hardening  her,  slowly  but 
surely.  The  color  left  her  cheeks,  her  eyes  grew  fixed 
in  their  look  of  pain,  and  at  last,  through  her  sorrow,  she 
was  changed  to  marble. 

The  marble  image  of  grief  stood  upon  the  plain  for 
many  days ;  until  at  last  there  came  a  mighty  hurricane 
sweeping  across  the  plain,  and  it  swept  away  the  motion- 
less figure  in  its  course.  It  carried  the  image  aloft  to  the 
top  of  the  high  mountain  overlooking  Thebes,  and  placed 
it  there  among  the  other  rocks. 

And  to  this  day,  you  can  see  the  woman  of  stone 
seated  on  the  high  mountain  top  ;  or  at  least  you  can  see 
a  rock  that  looks  something  like  a  woman  ;  and  in  the 
sightless  eyes  a  little  stream  has  its  source  and  trickles 
down  the  mountain  side,  as  though  poor  Niobe  wept  on 
forevei. 


CHILDREN 

COME  to  me,  O  ye  children  ! 

For  I  hear  you  at  your  play, 
And  the  questions  that  perplexed  me 

Have  vanished  quite  away. 

Ye  open  the  eastern  windows, 
That  look  toward  the*  sun, 

Where  thoughts  are  singing  swallows 
And  the  brooks  of  morning  run. 


96  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

In  your  hearts  are  the  birds  and  the  sunshine. 

In  your  thoughts  the  brooklet's  flow, 
But  in  mine  is  the  wind  of  autumn 

And  the  first  fall  of  the  snow. 

Ah  !  what  would  the  world  be  to  us 

If  the  children  were  no  more  ? 
NQ  should  dread  the  desert  behind  us 

Worse  than  the  dark  before. 

What  the  leaves  are  to  the  forest, 

With  light  and  air  for  food, 
Ere  their  sweet  and  tender  juices 

Have  been  hardened  into  wood,  — 

That  to  the  world  are  children  ; 

Through  them  it  feels  the  glow 
Of  a  brighter  and  sunnier  climate 

Than  reaches  the  trunks  below. 

Come  to  me,  O  ye  children  ! 

And  whisper  in  my  ear 
What  the  birds  and  the  winds  are  singing 

In  your  sunny  atmosphere. 

For  what  are  all  our  contrivings 

And  the  wisdom  of  our  books, 
When  compared  with  your  caresses, 

And  the  gladness  of  your  looks  ? 

Ye  are  better  than  all  the  ballads 

That  ever  were  sung  or  said  ; 
For  ye  are  living  poems, 

And  all  the  rest  are  dead. 

HENRY  WADSWORTH  LONGFELLOW. 


A  MIGHTY  HERO  97 


A    MIGHTY    HERO    OF    OLDEN    TIMES 

MANY  hundreds  of  years  ago,  there  was  born  a  little 
baby  who  grew  up  to  be  the  strongest  and  most  wonder- 
ful man  of  his  time. 

When  he  was  but  a  few  weeks  old,  Juno,  who  hated 
his  mother  and  therefore  wished  to  kill  the  little  boy,  sent 
two  huge  snakes  to  strangle  him  in  his  cradle. 

The  nurse  screamed  when  she  saw  the  serpents  coiling 
themselves  around  the  child,  and  her  scream  woke  the 
baby,  Hercules,  from  his  sleep.  Starting  up  in  his  cradle, 
he  seized  the  snakes,  one  with  each  hand,  and  wrung  their 
necks.  The  astonished  nurse  could  hardly  believe  what 
she  saw. 

You  can  well  understand  how  such  a  wonderful  baby 
might  grow  up  into  a  remarkable  man.  Hercules  was,  in 
fact,  the  strongest  man  of  whom  the  world  has  any  record. 
Nowadays,  when  we  wish  to  say  that  any  one  is  very, 
very  powerful,  we  call  his  strength  Herculean. 

Hercules  spent  the  greater  part  of  his  life  in  doing 
things  to  help  weaker  people.  Juno  still  wanted  to  show 
her  hatred  of  him,  so  she  sent  him  into  ail  sorts  of  dan- 
gers. He  had  to  fight  hard  battles,  and  kill  fierce  mon- 
sters, and,  in  short,  risk  his  life  all  the  time.  But  he  was 
so  brave  that  he  feared  nothing,  and  so  strong  that  he  over- 
came all  the  dangers  Juno  placed  in  his  path.  When  the 
queen  saw  this,  she  hit  upon  a  new  plan  for  making  him 
unhappy,  —  she  made  him  a  slave  to  the  king  of  Argos. 

Nothing  could  have  been  harder  for  Hercules  to  bear 
than  slavery  ;  for  he  had  a  restless  spirit,  which  made  him 
chafe  night  and  day  under  the  chains  that  bound  him. 


98  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

The  king  at  last  took  pity  on  him,  and  told  him  he  would 
set  him  free  if  he  would  perform  twelve  very  difficult  tasks. 
Nothing  could  have  suited  Hercules  better,  for  he  delighted 
in  danger  and  deeds  of  valor. 

And  that  is  how  the  hero  came  to  perform  those  won- 
derful  deeds  known  as  the  twelve  great  labors  of  Hercules. 
It  would  take  too  long  to  tell  you  much  about  them,  for 
each  is  a  story  in  itself.  There  were  monsters  and  drag- 
ons and  giants  and  other  horrible  creatures  to  be  killed, 
and  fleet  horses  and  fierce  animals  to  be  captured,  and 
many  bloody  battles  to  be  fought,  before  the  brave  man 
could  gain  his  freedom.  But  at  last  all  the  dangers  were 
overcome,  and  Hercules  was  set  free.  Then  with  a  light 
heart,  he  started  forth  on  his  own  wanderings. 

He  had  not  gone  far,  when  he  came  to  a  country 
ruled  by  a  king  who  had  a  very  beautiful  daughter,  Deia- 
nira,  and  before  many  days,  Hercules  had  asked  her  to  be 
his  wife.  The  girl  would  have  said  yes  gladly,  but  she 
knew  that  her  father  had  half  promised  her  in  marriage 
to  a  great  river  god.  The  king  was  undecided  as  to  what 
he  should  do  ;  but  at  length  it  was  agreed  that  Hercules 
and  the  river  god  should  show  their  strength  by  wrestling 
together,  and  that  the  victor  should  marry  the  king's 
daughter. 

Such  a  way  of  settling  the  dispute  may  seem  very 
strange  to  us,  but  it  pleased  both  the  suitors.  Hercules 
felt  sure  that  he  would  win  because  he  was  so  strong ; 
and  the  river  god  felt  equally  sure  that  he  would  be  the 
victor,  because  he  could  disguise  himself,  at  any  moment, 
and  take  on  the  form  of  an  animal. 

So  when  the  time  set  for  the  match  arrived,  both  the 
suitors  went  with  light  hearts  to  the  meeting  place.  The 


"il 


"She  filled  the  horn  with  her  autumn  fruits." 


A  MIGHTY  tiERO  IOI 

king  gave  the  signal  for  the  start,  and  the  two  mighty  ones 
fell  upon  each  other. 

Very  soon  everybody  could  see  that  Hercules  was 
uppermost.  Against  his  mighty  strength,  the  river  god 
was  like  a  child.  But  just  as  the  hero  was  clasping  his 
great  arms  about  his  rival  to  throw  him  down,  the  river 
god  used  his  magic  power,  and,  in  the  form  of  a  serpent, 
glided  from  his  grasp. 

"  Aha,"  laughed  Hercules,  when  he  saw  what  had  hap- 
pened, "  you  think  you  will  escape  me  that  way  ?  Why, 
I  slew  serpents  thrice  your  size  when  I  was  but  a  baby 
in  the  cradle."  And  he  sprang  upon  the  serpent,  and  in 
an  instant  wduld  have  wrung  its  neck,  when  lo !  it  had 
vanished,  and  in  its  stead  there  stood  a  fierce-looking  bull. 
The  river  god  had  saved  himself  by  again  changing  his 
form. 

Now  followed  the  fiercest  part  of  the  fight.  The  an- 
gry bull  dashed  at  Hercules  with  terrible  force ;  but  the 
hero  was  ready  for  the  attack,  and,  seizing  him  by  the 
horns,  held  him  down  fast  to  the  ground  in  spite  of  his 
struggles,  until  all  the  people  cried  out  that  Hercules  was 
the  victor. 

The  river  god  then  appeared  in  his  true  shape,  and 
yielded  his  claim.  So  Hercules  gained  the  king's  fair 
daughter  for  his  bride. 

In  that  last  fierce  struggle,  one  of  the  bull's  horns  was 
broken  off.  The  goddess  of  plenty,  or  Fortune,  as  she  is 
sometimes  called,  found  it  lying  forgotten  on  the  ground. 
She  was  so  much  pleased  with  its  shape  that  she  filled  it 
with  her  autumn  fruits  and  flowers  and  took  it  for  her  em- 
blem. And  this  is  the  story  of  the  origin  of  the  horn  of 
plenty,  which  we  see  at  so  many  of  our  autumn  festivals. 


102  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 


THE    STORY    OF    A    POISONED    SHIRT 

WHEN  Hercules  and  the  king's  daughter  had  been 
married,  and  the  feasting  was  over,  they  started  together 
to  journey  to  the  hero's  native  land. 

They  had  gone  some  distance,  when  they  came  to  a 
river  that  crossed  their  path.  Usually  it  was  hardly  more 
than  a  little  stream,  but  it  was  now  swollen  with  the 
spring  rains,  and  the  waters  had  risen  to  such  a  height 
that  Hercules  was  afraid  to  trust  himself  in  them  with 
his  precious  burden. 

As  he  was  standing  on  the  bank,  in  doubt  what  to  do, 
a  strange  creature  came  up  to  him  and  offered  to  carry 
Deianira  across.  It  was,  in  fact,  one  of  the  men  horses, 
or  centaurs,  as  they  were  called,  who  were  like  men  in  the 
upper  parts  of  their  bodies,  but  like  horses  in  the  lower 
parts ;  so  of  course  he  could  cross  a  stream  when  it  would 
have  been  impossible  for  a  man  to  do  so.  Hercules  ac- 
cepted the  kind  offer,  and  with  the  maiden  on  his  back, 
Nessus,  for  that  was  the  centaur's  name,  started  to  wade 
the  stream. 

Now  the  undercurrent  was  very  strong,  and  Nessus 
was  a  long  time  in  working  his  way  to  the  opposite  shore. 
Before  he  reached  it,  he  had  planned  to  run  away  with 
Dei'anira,  and  take  her  to  his  mountain  cave,  to  be  his 
wife.  So  no  sooner  had  his  hoofs  touched  dry  land  than 
he  galloped  away,  with  the  frightened  girl  clinging  to  his 
back,  screaming  with  all  her  might. 

Hercules,  who  also  was  having  a  hard  time  fighting  the 
strong  current,  heard  the  scream,  and  looking  up,  saw 
what  was  happening. 


A  POISONED  SHIRT  1 03 

He  raised  his  bow  to  his  shoulder  and  cried  out,  "  O 
false  Nessus,  you  rely  on  your  swift  horse's  feet  to  carry 
you  beyond  my  reach,  but  my  arrow  is  swifter  than  the 
fleetest  horse."  Then,  choosing  an  arrow,  he  took  careful 
aim,  and  the  next  instant  the  centaur  fell  to  the  ground, 
pierced  through  the  heart. 

Nessus  gave  one  cry  of  pain  ;  then  dipping  his  shirt  in 
the  blood  that  flowed  from  his  wound,  he  handed  it  to  the 
maiden,  saying,  "  Take  this,  fair  bride,  and  if  ever  your 
husband  should  cease  to  love  you,  send  him  this  garment 
dipped  in  the  blood  of  a  dying  centaur,  and  it  will  bring 
his  love  back  to  you."  Scarcely  had  he  finished  speaking 
when  he  fell  back  —  dead. 

Now  the  arrow  which  killed  Nessus  was  tipped  with, 
poison  from  a  terrible  creature  that  Hercules  had  slain 
long  ago  ;  and  so  strong  was  this  venom  that  in  an  instant 
it  had  affected  all  the  blood  in  the  centaur's  body ;  so  that 
the  shirt  dipped  in  his  blood  was  poisoned  as  much  as  the 
arrow  with  which  Hercules  had  slain  him. 

De'fanira  and  Hercules  went  on  their  way,  and,  without 
further  trials,  arrived  safe  in  the  city  of  Hercules'  birth, 
where  they  spent  many  happy  years  together.  So  well 
did  her  husband  love  her,  that  Dei'anira  had  almost  for- 
gotten about  the  poisoned  shirt  of  Nessus. 

But  after  some  time,  Hercules  began  to  grow  restless. 
He  was  tired  of  that  quiet  life  at  home,  and  he  often 
thought  of  his  early  adventures,  until  at  last  the  longing 
to  see  other  lands  and  to  do  other  great  deeds  became  too 
strong  for  him.  So  one  day  he  started  on  his  journeys. 

His  wife  missed  him  very  much,  but  she  loved  him  so 
well  that  she  had  not  the  heart  to  call  him  back,  since  he 
seemed  to  be  happier  in  his  wanderings. 


104  STORIES   OF  LONG  AGO 

Hercules  had  traveled  a  great  distance,  when  at  last 
he  came  to  a  city  by  the  sea.  There  he  saw  the  king's 
daughter,  and  grew  to  love  her  as  he  had  once  loved 
Deianira.  He  forgot  all  about  his  wife  awaiting  him  at 
home,  and  day  after  day  he  lingered  in  the  palace  of  the 
princess. 

Of  course,  De'fanira  soon  heard  how  Hercules  had  for- 
gotten her,  and  she  grieved  and  grieved  over  it,  till  she 
grew  pale  and  thin.  Then,  at  last,  she  remembered  the 
words  of  the  dying  centaur. 

She  sent  for  her  most  faithful  servant,  and  giving  him 
the  shirt,  told  him  to  take  it  to  his  master  Hercules,  in 
that  far-off  city  by  the  sea,  and  to  say  that  she  sent  him 
her  love  and  asked  him  to  wear  the  shirt  for  her  sake. 
Little  did  the  poor  woman  know  what  she  was  doing,  and 
little  did  the  innocent  servant  dream  of  the  fate  that  was 
in  store  for  him. 

He  traveled  many  miles,  and  at  last  came  to  the  city 
where  his  master  was  living.  He  sought  him  out  and 
gave  him  the  shirt,  with  Dei'anira's  message  ;  and  Her- 
cules straightway  put  it  on. 

In  a  short  time,  the  deadly  poison  began  its  work,  and 
Hercules  was  racked  with  strange  pains.  In  his  agony, 
he  tried  to  tear  off  the  fatal  shirt,  but  it  stuck  fast  to  his 
skin.  Then  the  great  hero  began  to  stride  up  and  down 
the  seashore,  crying  aloud  in  his  torture.  The  servant 
stood  amazed  for  a  moment,  and  then  hid  himself,  in  ter- 
ror, behind  a  rock. 

Suddenly  Hercules  spied  him  crouching  behind  the 
rock  ;  he  strode  up  to  him,  and  before  the  servant  could 
stammer  out  a  word  to  show  his  innocence,  Hercules 
seized  him,  and  flung  him  far  out  into  the  sea. 


THE  ARTISAN'S  H/INGS  IO$ 

The  gods  took  pity  on  him,  and,  as  he  was  falling, 
changed  him  into  a  rock  resembling  a  man  in  form  ;  and 
the  rock  still  stands  far  out  in  the  middle  of  the  sea. 

As  for  Hercules,  when  he  found  that  he  could  not  free 
himself  from  his  torture,  he  died  as  he  had  lived,  —  like  a 
hero.  With  his  own  hands  he  tore  up  great  trees  and 
bushes,  and  built  of  them  his  own  funeral  pile ;  then,  lying 
down  on  it,  he  wrapped  his  poisoned  shirt  about  him,  and, 
ordering  a  friend  to  set  fire  to  the  mighty  pile,  calmly 
awaited  his  death. 

The  flames  leaped  and  roared  and  mounted  ever  higher 
and  higher,  as  though  eager  to  devour  so  great  a  hero ; 
they  had  almost  reached  his  head,  when  suddenly  the 
heavens  opened,  and  Jupiter's  mighty  arm,  thrust  down 
from  the  sky,  snatched  Hercules  away  from  the  creep- 
ing, leaping  flames.  The  mortal  part  of  him  had  been 
burned  away  by  the  fire,  and  from  that  time,  so  the  story 
goes,  Hercules  became  one  of  the  mighty  company  of 
gods  in  high  Olympus. 


THE   ARTISAN'S    WONDERFUL   WINGS 

IN  ancient  Athens  there  once  lived  a  man  named 
Daedalus,  who  was  highly  honored  by  all  the  people  of 
the  city.  He  made  beautiful  statues  and  carvings  of  all 
kinds,  and  he  was,  besides,  a  most  skillful  builder.  The 
most  wonderful  thing  that  he  had  ever  built  was  a  strange 
winding  path,  called  the  labyrinth. 

Not  very  far  from  Greece  was  the  island  of  Crete,  ruled 


106  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

by  King  Minos,  a  man  who  could  be  a  very  good  friend 
and  a  very  cruel  enemy,  as  Daedalus  soon  learned. 

Minos  owned  a  hideous  monster,  known  as  the  Min- 
otaur, so  terrible  that  no  words  can  describe  it.  The  king 
wished  to  imprison  it  in  a  safe  place,  and  it  was  for  this 
creature  that  Daedalus  had  built  the  labyrinth.  The 
Minotaur  lived  in  a  broad,  open  space  in  the  center  of 
the  maze,  which  was  reached  by  a  winding  pathway,  — 
a  path  with  so  many  turns  and  twists  that  one  who  en- 
tered it  could  never  find  his  way  out  again. 

Perhaps,  in  another  story,  you  will  hear  something  more 
about  this  labyrinth  and  the  Minotaur  who  lived  in  it. 

But  now  let  us  go  back  to  Athens  for  a  while.  Daeda- 
lus had  a  nephew  named  Perdix,  a  very  able  young  boy, 
who  was  anxious  to  learn  to  do  those  things  which  had 
made  his  uncle  famous.  Daedalus  became  the  boy's 
teacher.  He  taught  him  all  he  knew  and  was  pleased  to 
find  such  an  apt  pupil  ;  but  his  pleasure  changed  to  jeal- 
ousy and  anger  when  the  boy  gave  signs  of  becoming 
greater  than  his  master.  Young  as  he  was,  he  had  already 
invented  the  saw  and  the  compass.  Athens  rang  with 
praises  of  the  clever  lad,  and  it  was  said  that  he  would 
some  day  be  far  greater  than  his  uncle. 

Thus  all  the  uncle's  love  for  his  nephew  was  turned  to 
hatred,  and  he  was  anxious  to  get  rid  of  the  boy  who 
was  so  much  in  his  way.  One  evening,  toward  sunset, 
teacher  and  pupil  were  walking  together  at  the  side  of 
some  cliffs  that  overhung  the  sea.  The  boy,  not  noticing 
his  uncle's  gloomy  face,  was  talking  happily  about  all  the 
great  things  he  meant  to  do  by  and  by,  when  suddenly 
Daedalus  grasped  his  arm  and  pushed  him  over  the  edge 
of  the  cliff  into  the  sea  below. 


Minerva,  the  Goddess  of  Wisdom. 


THE  ARTISAN'S   WINGS  1 09 

Perdix  would  surely  have  been  drowned,  had  he  not 
been  rescued  by  Minerva,  the  goddess  of  wisdom,  who 
loved  him  because  he  was  so  skillful.  She  changed  him 
into  a  partridge,  and  he  flew  off  across  the  waters. 

Daedalus  soon  became  afraid  of  what  the  people  of 
Athens  might  do  if  they  learned  of  his  crime.  So  taking 
with  him  his  young  son,  Icarus,  he  left  Athens  in  the 
night  and  fled  to  the  island  of  Crete,  where  King  Minos 
received  him  very  kindly. 

But  before  long,  Daedalus  got  himself  into  trouble  by 
interfering  with  the  king's  household,  and  Minos  made 
both  father  and  son  prisoners  on  the  island.  Daedalus 
grew  very  weary  of  that  life,  and  thought  and  thought  of 
some  means  of  escaping  from  the  island  ;  but  he  could  not 
get  a  boat,  though  day  after  day  he  looked  at  the  white- 
sailed  vessels  on  the  water,  and  longed  to  have  one  o( 
them  for  his  own. 

One  day  Icarus  was  looking  now  up  into  the  sky  where 
many  birds  were  flying  to  and  fro,  and  then  down  at  the 
sea  which  was  covered  with  sail  boats,  when  suddenly  he 
said,  "  Oh,  father,  the  vessels  look  like  great,  white-winged 
birds  skimming  lightly  over  the  waves.  They  seem  to  fly 
just  as  their  sister  birds  in  the  sky  do." 

The  child's  words  gave  the  father  a  sudden  happy 
thought.  He  would  try  to  make  wings  for  himself  and 
his  son,  and  fly  from  this  island  in  which  he  had  so  long 
been  an  unwilling  prisoner. 

The  same  evening,  he  set  to  work  to  make  two  pair  of 
wings.  He  joined  feathers  of  different  lengths,  and,  with 
his  deft  fingers,  shaped  them  like  birds'  wings.  When 
they  were  finished  he  fastened  them  with  soft  wax  to  his 
son's  shoulders  and  to  his  own. 


IIO  STORIES   OF  LONG  AGO 

Then,  with  a  trembling  voice,  he  said,  "Icarus,  my 
boy,  watch  me  all  the  time,  and  follow  where  I  lead ;  for 
if  you  go  too  low  the  water  may  clog  your  wings,  and  if 
you  fly  too  high  the  heat  of  the  sun  will  scorch  them." 
He  kissed  his  beloved  child,  and  praying  that  no  accident 
should  befall  him,  gave  the  signal  to  start. 

Slowly,  like  two  great  birds,  father  and  son  rose  into 
the  air.  The  fishermen  and  the  sailors  who  saw  them 
passing  overhead,  thought  they  must  be  gods  flying  near 
to  earth,  and  fell  on  their  knees.  Over  sea  and  land  they 
went,  swiftly  and  steadily,  the  father  ever  turning  to  see 
that  his  son  was  following  in  safety. 

For  a  while  Icarus  followed  where  Daedalus  led  the 
way.  But  after  a  time  he  began  to  feel  bold ;  and  when 
his  father  was  not  looking,  flew  higher  and  higher,  trying 
to  reach  the  sky  which  looked  so  blue  above  him. 

But  alas  !  The  higher  he  flew,  the  more  fiercely  the  sun 
beat  down  upon  him.  Before  long  the  great  heat  melted 
the  wax  by  which  the  wings  were  fastened,  and  they 
dropped  from  his  shoulders.  Poor  Icarus  now  had  noth- 
ing to  hold  him  up  in  the  air,  and  he  began  to  fall  down, 
down,  down.  In  his  fright  he  cried  aloud  to  his  father. 
Daedalus  turned  just  in  time  to  see  his  son's  head  sink 
below  the  waves,  while  the  fatal  wings  floated  on  the 
surface. 

The  poor  father  flew  toward  the  spot  where  he  had 
seen  his  son  sink,  lifted  the  lifeless  body,  and  swam  with 
it  to  the  shore  of  the  nearest  island.  There,  with  a  heavy 
heart,  he  dug  a  grave  and  buried  Icarus. 

While  he  was  thus  engaged,  he  heard  a  strange  cry 
overhead,  and  looking  up,  saw  a  partridge  wheeling  its 
flight  above  him.  Immediately  he  thought  of  Perdix, 


BIRDS  IN  SUMMER  III 

whom  he  had  so  cruelly  killed,  and  he  felt  that  the  death 
of  his  own  son  was  his  punishment  for  that  wicked  deed. 

For  a  long  time  after  that,  the  place  was  known  as  the 
island  of  Icarus,  and  the  sea  in  which  the  boy  was  drowned 
was  called  the  Icarian  Sea. 


BIRDS   IN   SUMMER 

How  pleasant  the  life  of  a  bird  must  be, 
Flitting  about  in  each  leafy  tree; 
In  the  leafy  trees,  so  broad  and  tall, 
Like  a  green  and  beautiful  palace  hall, 
With  its  airy  chambers,  light  and  boon, 
That  open  to  sun  and  stars  and  moon; 
That  open  to  the  bright,  blue  sky, 
And  the  frolicsome  winds  as  they  wander  by! 

They  have  left  their  nests  on  the  forest  bough; 
Those  homes  of  delight  they  need  not  now; 
And  the  young  and  the  old  they  wander  out, 
And  traverse  their  green  world  round  about; 
And  hark !  at  the  top  of  this  leafy  hall, 
How,  one  to  the  other  in  love  they  call : 
"  Come  up,  come  up  ! "  they  seem  to  say, 
"  Where  the  topmost  twigs  in  the  breezes  sway ! 

"  Come  up  !  come  up  !  for  the  world  is  fair, 

Where  the  merry  leaves  dance  in  the  summer  air." 

And  the  birds  below  give  back  the  cry, 

"  We  come,  we  come  to  the  branches  high  !  " 

How  pleasant  the  lives  of  the  birds  must  be, 

Living  in  love  in  a  leafy  tree  ; 

And  away  through  the  air  what  joy  to  go, 

And  to  look  on  the  green,  bright  earth  below  1 


112  STORIES   OF  LONG   AGO 

How  pleasant  the  life  of  a  bird  must  be, 

Skimming  about  on  the  breezy  sea. 

Cresting  the  billows  like  silvery  foam, 

Then  wheeling  away  to  its  cliff-built  home  ! 

What  joy  it  must  be  to  sail,  upborne 

By  a  strong,  free  wing,  through  the  rosy  morn ! 

To  meet  the  young  sun,  face  to  face, 

And  pierce  like  a  shaft  the  boundless  space, 

To  pass  through  the  bowers  of  the   silver  cloud, 
To  sing  in  the  thunder  halls  aloud, 
To  spread  out  the  wings  for  a  wild,  free  flight 
With  the  upper  cloud  winds  —  oh,  what  delight ! 
Oh,  what  would  I  give,   like  a  bird,  to  go 
Right  on  through  the  arch  of  the  sunlit  bow, 
And  see  how  the  water  drops  are  kissed 
Into  green  and  yellow  and  amethyst! 

How  pleasant  the  life  of  a  bird  must  be, 
Wherever  it  listeth   there  to  flee  : 
To  go,  when  a  joyful  fancy  calls, 
Dashing  adown,  'mong  the  waterfalls  ; 
Then  to  wheel  about,  with  its  mate  at  play, 
Above  and  below,  and  among  the  spray, 
Hither  and  thither,  with  screams  as  wild 
As  the  laughing  mirth  of  a  rosy  child  ! 

What  joy  it  must  be,  like  a  living  breeze, 
To  flutter  about  'mid  the  flowering  trees  ; 
Lightly  to  soar,  and  to  see  beneath 
The  wastes  of  the  blossoming  purple  beath, 
And  the  yellow  furze,  like  fields  of  gold, 
That  gladdened  some  fairy  region  old  ! 
On  the  mountain  tops,  on  the  billowy  sea, 
On  the  leafy  stems  of  the  forest  tree, 
How  pleasant  the  life  of  a  bird  must  be ! 

MARY  HOWITT 


A  CRUEL   KING  1 13 


A    CRUEL   KING 

WHEN  Aegeus,  king  of  the  famous  old  city  of  Athens, 
was  still  a  young  man,  he  was  one  day  passing  through 
a  village,  where  he  saw  a  beautiful  maiden  with  whom  he 
fell  in  love.  Soon  afterwards  he  married  her,  and  they 
had  one  child,  a  boy,  whom  they  called  Theseus. 

When  this  baby  was  a  few  months  old,  Aegeus  had  to 
go  back  to  Athens  ;  but,  before  leaving,  he  buried  in  the 
ground  his  sword  and  sandals,  and  covered  them  with  a 
heavy  stone.  Then,  turning  to  his  wife,  he  said,  "When 
our  boy  is  old  and  strong  enough  to  lift'  that  stone,  let 
him  take  the  sword  and  sandals  and  follow  me  to  Athens, 
where  I  will  make  him  heir  to  my  throne."  Then,  kissing 
his  wife  and  baby,  he  started  on  his  journey. 

Now  about  the  same  time  that  Theseus  was  born, 
Minos,  king  of  the  island  of  Crete,  also  became  the  father 
of  a  baby  boy.  Minos  loved  his  child  very  much  and 
watched  over  him  with  great  fatherly  care,  and  the  boy 
was  taught  all  the  arts  which  at  that  time  were  thought 
fitting  for  a  prince. 

Every  year  the  people  of  Athens  had  a  festival,  in 
which  all  the  young  men  of  Greece  and  the  neighboring 
islands  met  to  try  their  skill  in  various  games.  When 
the  prince  of  Crete  had  grown  up,  his  father  told  him  he 
might  take  part  in  the  festival,  and  so  he  went  to  Athens. 

Before  long  almost  every  one  in  Athens  grew  to  like 
him,  for  he  was  a  frank,  generous  youth,  and  most  skillful 
in  all  the  games  in  which  he  took  part.  Only  Aegeus,  the 
king  of  Athens,  did  not  care  for  him.  He  was  jealous  of 
this  young  stranger ;  and  one  night,  as  the  boy  was  travel- 


114  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

ing  back  to  the  island  of  Crete,  he  sent  some  men  after 
him  to  kill  him  on  the  road. 

Perhaps  the  people  of  Athens  might  have  blamed  their 
king  severely  for  this  cruel  act,  had  not  something  hap- 
pened which  made  them  forget  all  about  the  young  prince 
of  Crete.  And  this  was  nothing  less  than  the  coming  of 
their  own  prince  to  his  father's  kingdom. 

The  boy,  Theseus,  whom  the  king  had  last  seen  as  a 
baby,  had  grown  to  be  a  strong  youth,  and  one  day  his 
mother  took  him  to  the  place  where  the  sword  and  sandals 
were  buried,  and  told  him  of  his  father's  message.  "Try, 
my  son,"  she  said,  when  she  had  finished,  "and  see 
whether  you  can  lift  the  stone."  Theseus  bent  his  knee 
and,  using  all  his  strength,  easily  raised  the  heavy  stone 
and  took  from  under  it  the  sword  and  the  sandals.  Then, 
bidding  his  mother  farewell,  he  started  for  Athens, 

The  journey  to  Athens  was  very  dangerous,  for  bold 
robbers  lay  hidden  behind  every  turn  in  the  road ;  cruel 
giants  set  all  kinds  of  traps  for  unwary  travelers ;  and  the 
forests  on  either  side  of  the  highway  were  filled  with  fierce 
monsters.  But  Theseus  killed  all  the  robbers ;  by  his 
cunning  outwitted  the  cruel  giants  ;  and  with  his  father's 
sharp  sword  slew  all  the  wild  be-asts  that  attacked  him. 

At  last,  weary  and  footsore,  yet  looking  like  a  king's 
son,  every  inch  of  him,  he  came  to  the  gates  of  his 
father's  palace.  Aegeus  was  overjoyed  at  having  such  a 
beautiful,  brave  youth  for  his  son.  He  threw  open  the 
gates  of  the  palace  to  all  the  people,  and  the  city  was 
filled  with  feasting  and  rejoicing  at  the  coming  of  the  heir 
to  the  throne  of  Athens.  And  that  was  the  reason  why 
no  one  asked  after  the  other  young  prince. 

While  Athens  was  almost  beside  itself  with  joy,  King 


RISE!    THE  DAY  IS  PASSING  115 

Minos,  in  Crete,  waited  day  after  day  for  the  return  of  his 
son.  But  alas !  cruelly  slain,  he  lay  dead  in  a  wood  out- 
side of  Athens.  At  last  some  travelers  found  him  there, 
and  brought  his  body  back  to  the  waiting  father.  When 
King  Minos  saw  his  murdered  son,  and  heard  the  story 
of  his  death,  he  wept  for  many  a  day,  and  vowed  that  he 
would  take  vengeance  on  the  cruel  king  of  Athens. 

And  one  day,  as  Aegeus  was  walking  in  the  palace 
gardens  with  Theseus,  a  messenger  came  running  in  hot 
haste,  to  tell  the  news  that  King  Minos  was  coming 
against  Athens  with  a  mighty  army,  to  avenge  the. death 
of  his  son. 

So  all  of  a  sudden  the  feasting  in  merry  Athens  came 
to  an  end,  and  all  was  hurry  and  confusion  as  the  people 
hastily  prepared  for  war. 


RISE  !  FOR  THE  DAY  IS  PASSING 

RISE  !  for  the  day  is  passing, 

And  you  lie  dreaming  on ; 
The  others  have  buckled  their  armor 

And  forth  to  the  fight  are  gone. 
A  place  in  the  ranks  awaits  you, 

Each,  man  has  some  part  to  play ; 
The  past  and  the  future  are  nothing 

In  the  face  of  the  stern  to-day. 

Rise !  from  your  dreams  of  the  future, 
Of  gaining  some  hard-fought  field, 

Of  storming  some  airy  fortress, 
Or  bidding  some  giant  yield. 


1 1 6  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

Your  future  has  deeds  of  glory, 
Of  honor  (God  grant  it  may!), 

But  your  arm  will  never  be  stronger, 
Or  the  need  so  great  as  to-day. 

Rise !  for  the  day  is  passing ; 

The  sound  that  you  scarcely  hear 
Is  the  enemy  marching  to  battle  — 

Arise  !  for  the  foe  is  here ! 
Stay  not  to  sharpen  your  weapons, 

Or  the  hour  will  strike  at  last 
When,  from  dreams  of  a  coming  battle, 

You  may  wake  to  find  it  past. 

ADELAIDE  ANNE  PROCTER. 


A    LOCK    OF    PURPLE   HAIR,  AND    WHAT 
CAME    OF    IT 

KING  MINOS,  filled  with  angry,  bitter  feelings,  started 
to  march  against  Athens  with  a  great  army.  On  his 
way  he  had  to  pass  through  a  large  city,  in  order  to  reach 
the  bay  that  lay  on  the  other  side  of  it  ;  but,  when  he 
came  to  the  gates,  he  found  them  locked,  and  the  people 
within  refused  to  let  him  go  through  the  town. 

So  the  army  put  up  their  tents  outside  the  gates,  and 
prepared  to  lay  siege  to  the  city. 

Now,  the  king  of  the  city  was  an  old,  white-haired  man, 
but,  strange  to  say,  hanging  right  over  the  middle  of  his 
forehead,  was  a  long  lock  of  purple-black  hair  ;  and  on 
this  lock  of  hair  depended  the  safety  of  the  city.  The 
people  believed  that  no  stranger  could  enter  their  gates, 
unless  he  could  first  secure  the  purple  lock. 


A  LOCK  OF  PURPLE  HAIR  1 1/ 

When  the  king's  daughter  heard  that  the  army  of 
Minos  had  come,  she  hastened  to  the  top  of  a  high  tower 
in  the  palace,  and  looked  about  her.  She  saw  the  army 
encamped  outside  the  walls,  and  seated  on  a  white  horse, 
with  his  purple  robe  fluttering  in  the  breeze,  was  King 
Minos  himself. 

Minos  was  tall  and  noble  in  appearance,  and  no  sooner 
had  the  princess  seen  him  than  she  fell  in  love  with  him. 

She  longed  to  see  him  more  closely  and  to  speak  with 
him,  and  felt  pained  at  the  thought  of  the  war  which  made 
him  her  enemy.  If  only  she  could  fly  out  of  the  gates  and 
tell  him  how  much  she  cared  for  him,  —  she  would  do 
anything  to  win  his  love. 

No  sooner  had  this  thought  come  into  her  mind  than 
it  was  followed  by  another.  "  Perhaps  if  I  opened  the 
gates  for  him  he  would  love  me  ;  but  I  will  not,  for  that 
would  mean  being  a  traitor,  not  only  to  my  city,  but  to 
my  own  father."  The  girl  loved  her  father  dearly,  for 
he  was  very  kind  to  her,  and  would  do  anything  to.  give 
her  pleasure. 

Still,  day  after  day,  as  she  watched  Minos  from  her 
high  tower,  the  thought  of  this  one  deed  by  which  she 
might  win  his  love  would  not  leave  her  mind.  And  at 
last,  it  no  longer  seemed  so  dreadful  a  thing. 

The  end  of  it  was,  that  one  night  she  crept  into  the 
room  where  her  father  lay  sleeping,  and  quickly  cut  the 
lock  of  purple  hair  from  off  his  head.  She  did  not  even 
feel  ashamed  of  the  wicked  deed,  for  she  could  no  longer 
think  of  anything  but  King  Minos.  Then  she  slipped  out 
into  the  night,  unbolted  the  bars,  and,  throwing  the  gates 
wide  open,  stood  before  the  astonished  king. 

"  I  am  the  king's  daughter,"  she  said,  "  and  for  your 


Il8  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

sake  I  have  stolen  my  father's  purple  lock,  which  will 
enable  you  to  conquer  the  city.  Take  it,  with  my  love." 

But  Minos  stepped  back  from  her  in  horror.  "What!" 
he  cried,  "would  you  risk  the  life  of  your  father,  and  do 
harm  to  your  city,  all  for  love  of  a  stranger  ?  She  who 
would  do  that  would  do  anything  wicked.  I  will  have 
nothing  to  do  with  you  or  your  evil  deeds." 

Morning  was  breaking  as  he  spoke  ;  and,  waking  his 
men,  he  marched  into  the  city  and  conquered  it  by  his 
own  bravery  and  arms,  without  so  much  as  looking  at  the 
lock  of  purple  hair. 

When  he  had  reached  the  bay  at  the  other  end  of  the 
town,  he  ordered  his  men  to  seize  the  ships  that  were  lying 
there,  and  to  embark  without  further  delay.  The  princess 
stood  on  the  shore,  weeping,  as  she  watched  the  soldiers 
preparing  to  go. 

When  at  length  Minos  threw  off  the  last  rope,  she 
sprang  into  the  water,  and,  grasping  the  helm  of  the 
boat,  cried,  "  I  will  go  with  you  whether  you  want  me 
or  not,  for  without  you  life  is  worthless  to  me.  The 
gates  of  my  own  city  are  closed  against  me,  for  I  have 
betrayed  it  for  your  sake.  I  will  follow  you  ;  for  if  I 
have  been  a  traitor  to  my  people,  I  have  at  least  been  a 
friend  to  you." 

The  soldiers  pushed  her  roughly  from  the  boat,  and 
she  felt  herself  sinking,  sinking  in  the  waves  ;  but  sud- 
denly her  body  grew  light  as  air  —  she  had  been  changed 
into  a  bird. 

Sorrowfully  she  flew  above  the  city  that  had  formerly 
been  her  home.  She  longed  to  speak  to  the  people  in  the 
streets,  and,  above  all,  to  see  her  dear  father  ;  but  the 
nearest  she  ever  came  to  his  palace,  was  when  she  beat 


THE  KING'S  PUNISHMENT 

her  wings  against  the  walls  of  the  tower  from  which  she 
had  first  seen  King  Minos. 

The  other  birds  of  the  air  seemed  to  shun  her,  as 
though  they  knew  her  story ;  so  she  lived  lonely  and  with 
no  one  to  love  her,  as  a  punishment  for  her  wickedness  in 
cutting  off  the  lock  of  purple  hair. 


THE    CRUEL   KING'S    PUNISHMENT 

AFTER  a  short  journey,  without  further  adventures, 
King  Minos  reached  Athens,  and,  of  course,  he  found  the 
gates  of  the  city  closed  and  well-guarded.  So  he  pitched 
his  tents  outside  the  walls,  to  wait  there  until  the  gates 
should  be  opened. 

Now  Minos  had  taken  along  an  abundant  supply  of 
food  for  his  army,  and  besides,  when  that  was  used  up,  he 
could  readily  send  his  soldiers  for  more.  But  the  people 
in  the  besieged  city  had  soon  eaten  up  their  store  of  food, 
and,  as  you  will  understand,  they  had  no  way  of  getting 
any  more  ;  for  they  could  not  leave  the  city  without  falling 
into  the  enemy's  hands.  Many  people  starved  to  death, 
and  all  the  men  were  so  weak  from  hunger  that  they  had 
no  strength  with  which  to  fight  the  well-fed  soldiers  of 
Crete. 

The  people  consulted  their  oracle,  and  were  told  that 
they  must  do  whatever  King  Minos  asked,  if  they  wished 
to  save  their  city  from  ruin.  A  messenger  was  thereupon 
sent  to  the  king  of  Crete  to  ask  on  what  terms  he  would 
leave  the  city. 


120  STORIES   OF  LONG  AGO 

You  remember,  I  told  you  in  another  story,  that  where- 
as Minos  could  be  a  very  good  friend,  he  could  also  be 
a  very  cruel  enemy.  What  he  asked  of  the  people  of 
Athens  was  very  hard  indeed  ;  but  you  must  not  forget 
how  the  poor  father's  heart  was  bleeding  for  his  murdered 
son. 

He  said  that  every  year  the  people  of  Athens  must 
send  to  Crete  seven  youths  and  seven  young  maidens. 
These  he  would  give  as  food  to  that  terrible  monster,  the 
Minotaur,  which  Daedalus  had  shut  up  in  the  center  of 
the  labyrinth.  • 

When  the  messenger  returned  and  told  what  terms 
King  Minos  had  proposed,  there  was  great  sorrow  in 
Athens.  At  first  the  people  felt  that  it  would  be  impos- 
sible to  do  what  the  king  demanded,  but  then  they  re- 
membered the  words  of  their  oracle,  and  said,  "  Surely  it 
is  better  that  seven  youths  and  seven  maidens  should  die 
each  year,  than  that  every  one  in  Athens  should  perish." 

So  all  the  young  boys  and  girls  were  called  together  in 
the  market  place,  where  they  drew  lots  to  decide  which 
should  be  the  victims  to  the  Minotaur.  The  lots  were 
balls,  some  white  and  some  black;  and  the  fourteen  un- 
lucky ones  who  drew  the  black  balls  went  away  with  King 
Minos,  and  were  given  to  the  Minotaur  for  food. 

The  next  year  and  the  next  the  same  dreadful  thing 
was  done.  Although  the  Athenians  were  filled  with  horror 
at  the  cruelty  of  the  demand,  they  dared  not  disobey  King 
Minos.  But  when  the  time  came  for  paying  the  fourth 
tribute,  as  this  sacrifice  was  called,  young  Prince  Theseus 
declared  that  he  would  go  as  one  of  the  seven,  either  to 
free  his  city  of  this  terrible  yearly  burden,  or  to  die  with 
his  people. 


ARIADNE'S  THREAD  121 

In  vain  the  old  king  tried  to  make  him  change  his 
mind,  —  the  brave  prince  vowed  that  he  would  either  free 
Athens  of  this  unbearable  yoke,  or  else  die  in  the  struggle. 


A   THREAD    THAT    SAVED    MANY    LIVES 

WHEN  the  day  for  starting  came,  the  king,  weeping 
bitterly,  followed  his  son  down  to  the  black-flagged  ship, 
in  which  the  doomed  ones  were  to  sail.  How  he  repented 
that  cruel  deed  of  long  ago,  in  return  for  which  he  was 
now  to  lose  his  own  son  ! 

Theseus  tried  to  comfort  him.  "  Father,"  he  said,  "  I 
am  young  and  strong,  and  I  overcame  many  monsters  and 
giants  even  when  I  was  little  more  than  a  child.  Fear 
not  —  I  will  kill  the  Minotaur,  and  come  back  to  you  in 
triumph."  And  so  he  went  on  his  way. 

During  the  journey  Theseus  tried  to  cheer  his  com- 
panions by  hopeful  words  ;  but  they  had  no  hope,  for  they 
thought  no  human  being  could .  overcome  that  monster, 
and  besides,  once  in  the  labyrinth,  no  one  could  find  the 
way  back  to  the  entrance. 

At  last  the  ship  reached  the  island  of  Crete,  and  the 
young  people  were  led  into  the  king's  presence.  At  sight 
of  those  comely  boys  and  fair,  trembling  maidens,  any 
heart  might  have  softened. 

But  whenever  King  Minos  felt  the  least  pity,  he  closed 
his  eyes  and  seemed  to  see  the  body  of  his  murdered  boy, 
and  that  made  him  as  hard  and  cruel  as  ever. 

Standing  by  the  king's  side  was  his  daughter  Ariadne, 


122  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

a  beautiful,  tender-hearted  girl.  She  wept  for  pity  when 
she  saw  the  youths  and  maidens  and  thought  how  soon 
the  horrible  Minotaur  would  make  a  meal  of  them. 

Suddenly  the  king  beheld  Theseus,  and  his  eyes  spar- 
kled, as  he  said,  "  Is  not  the  young  prince  of  Athens 
standing  among  you  ?  "  "  I  am  he,  your  majesty,"  an- 
swered Theseus  proudly,  "  and  I  have  a  favor  to  ask  of 
you.  I  pray  you,  let  my  companions  sleep  in  the  court- 
yard to-night,  and  let  me  enter  the  labyrinth  alone.  In 
the  morning  the  others  may  follow." 

"  The  prince  wishes  to  die  alone,"  answered  the  king. 
"  Let  him  do  so." 

All  this  time  Ariadne  had  been  looking  with  blushing 
cheeks  and  a  beating  heart  at  the  brave  young  prince. 
"  He  shall  not  die,  if  I  can  save  him,"  was  her  thought. 

She  asked  leave  to  lead  Theseus  to  the  entrance  of  the 
labyrinth  that  night,  and  when  it  was  dark,  she  passed 
with  him  out  of  the  palace  gates. 

It  was  a  clear,  starry  night.  A  light  wind  was  blow- 
ing, and  the  sails  of  the  boat  that  had  carried  Theseus 
from  Athens  flapped  to  and  fro  in  the  breeze. 

When  they  had  reached  the  entrance,  Ariadne  spoke. 
"Prince  Theseus,"  she  said,  "my  heart  grieves  for  you 
and  your  friends  who  must  die  this  dreadful  death.  You 
are  brave  and  strong,  and  your  sword  is  sharp.  Why 
should  you  not  slay  the  monster  and  escape  to-night  with 
all  your  companions  ?  " 

Theseus  looked  gratefully  at  the  girl  who  showed  such 
pity  for  him,  and  answered,  "  Fair  princess,  my  arm  is 
strong  enough  to  slay  any  creature  ;  but  they  tell  me  that 
even  if  I  kill  the  Minotaur,  I  can  never  find  my  way  back 
out  of  the  labyrinth." 


ARIADNE'S    THREAD  123 

Then  Ariadne  gave  Theseus  a  firm  thread,  and  told 
him  to  fasten  one  end  of  it  to  the  entrance  gate,  and  to 
keep  tight  hold  of  the  other  with  his  left  hand.  If,  then, 
he  should  kill  the  monster,  he  could  easily  find  his  way 
out  again  by  winding  up  the  thread  which  was  fastened 
to  the  entrance. 

Theseus,  after  thanking  the  princess  for  her  help,  did 
as  she  told  him,  and  entered  the  gate.  Through  many 
dark,  winding  passages  he  passed,  keeping  firm  hold  of  the 
precious  thread  ;  and  at  last  he  came  into  the  open  court. 
There  lay  the  Minotaur,  fast  asleep,  for  he  expected  no 
food  until  the  next  morning. 

Stealthily,  for  fear  of  waking  him  from  his  sleep,  The- 
seus crept  up  behind  him,  and  with  his  sharp  sword  cut 
off  the  monster's  head.  Then  he  started  back,  carefully 
winding  up  the  thread  as  Ariadne  had  directed. 

It  seemed  to  him  that  he  would  never  come  out  of 
those  dark,  gloomy  passages.  Had  the  thread  broken 
from  its  fastening,  and  had  he,  after  all,  lost  his  way? 
But  still  he  followed  it  up  anxiously,  and  at  last  came  to 
the  entrance  of  the  cave,  and  saw  the  starry  heavens  once 
more.  Then  he  sank  to  the  ground,  worn  out  with  his 
struggle  and  his  wanderings. 

Ariadne  had  been  waiting  all  the  while,  and  she  now 
brought  him  food  to  strengthen  him,  and  urged  him  to 
flee  in  the  night.  Theseus  asked  her  to  go  with  him  and 
be  his  wife ;  and  the  girl  consented,  for  she  had  loved  the 
prince  from  the  moment  when  first  she  pitied  him  and  his 
helpless  companions. 

Together  they  went  into  the  courtyard,  awoke  the 
sleeping  youths  and  maidens,  and  led  them,  wondering,  to 
the  ship. 


124  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

When  all  were  on  board,  Theseus  lifted  the  anchor, 
and,  rejoicing,  they  sailed  away  from  the  place  where  they 
had  expected  to  die.  The  Minotaur  was  dead,  and  from 
that  time  forth,  the  people  of  Athens  were  no  longer  re- 
quired to  send  the  tribute  to  the  king  of  Crete. 


HOW  A  WICKED  CITY  WAS  DESTROYED 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  was  a  town  in  which  the 
people  had  grown  to  be  very  hard-hearted  and  wicked. 
Whenever  strangers  entered  the  streets,  instead  of  wel- 
coming them  with  kind  words  and  offering  them  a  resting 
place,  these  rude  people  closed  their  doors  against  the 
wanderers,  and  even  pelted  them  with  dirt  and  stones. 

The  children  would  follow  them  through  the  streets, 
jeering  and  making  ugly  faces  at  them,  but  the  grown 
people  were  even  worse  than  the  children. 

Far  and  wide  the  place  was  known  for  its  lack  of  hos- 
pitality. Hospitality  is  a  long  word,  but  it  has  such  a 
beautiful  meaning  that  we  can  forgive  its  length.  It 
means  those  kind  feelings  of  the  heart  which  lead  peo- 
ple to  give  shelter  to  strangers  and  homeless  wanderers, 
and  to  share  with  them  the  best  fare  they  have  to  offer. 

In  olden  times  people  thought  even  more  of  this  vir- 
tue of  hospitality  than  we  do  nowadays,  and  so  the  con- 
duct of  these  wicked  people  was  all  the  more  blamable. 

On  the  outskirts  of  the  town,  there  stood  a  little, 
modest-looking  cottage,  thatched  with  straw.  In  it  dwelt 
an  old  couple,  Philemon  and  his  wife  Baucis.  They  were 


"  His  feet  seemed  hardly  to  touch  the  ground." 


A    WICKED  CITY  12? 

very  poor ;  but,  in  spite  of  their  poverty,  they  were  con- 
tented and  happy,  and  always  glad  to  share  their  last  crust 
with  any  one  who  came  to  their  door. 

One  evening  two  strangers  entered  the  gates  of  the 
city.  One  was  a  tall,  noble-looking  man  with  massive  head 
and  fine  features.  His  companion  was  much  younger,  and 
there  was  something  bright  and  quick  about  him.  Indeed, 
at  times  his  feet  seemed  hardly  to  touch  the  ground, 
as  he  almost  flew  along.  He  wore  a  curious  cap,  too, 
and  in  his  left  hand  he  carried  a  staff  wreathed  with  two 
snakes. 

The  strangers  knocked  at  the  door  of  the  first  cottage 
they  came  to,  and  asked  for  a  night's  shelter.  Not  only 
was  this  refused,  but  harsh  words  were  given  in  answer  to 
the  simple  request. 

The  strangers  went  on  to  the  next  cottage  and  the 
next ;  but  nowhere  did  they  receive  a  welcome.  More- 
over, a  crowd  of  children  collected  and  followed  the  wan- 
derers with  hoots  and  cries. 

Philemon  and  Baucis,  resting  in  their  little  cottage 
after  their  day's  work,  heard  the  noise  and  uproar  and  went 
to  the  door.  When  they  saw  the  strangers  approaching, 
with  the  jeering  crowd  at  their  heels,  they  hastened  to 
meet  them. 

"Friends,"  said  old  Philemon,  "our  cottage  is  small 
and  our  fare  humble,  but  if  you  will  share  it  with  us,  we 
shall  feel  honored." 

The  strangers  gladly  accepted,  and  were  soon  seated 
by  the  hearth,  while  Philemon  heaped  on  the  logs  to  make 
the  room  more  cheery,  and  Baucis  prepared  the  simple 
meal. 

Soon  all  was   ready,  and  the  strangers  seated  them- 


128  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

selves  at  the  table,  while  the  old  couple  filled  their  plates. 
There  was  only  bread  and  milk,  with  sweet  honey  and  a 
few  grapes  from  the  vine  in  the  garden  ;  yet  the  wan- 
derers seemed  to  enjoy  their  meal  very  much. 

As  they  kept  filling  and  refilling  their  glasses  with  the 
sweet  milk,  Baucis  became  worried  ;  for  she  knew  the 
pitcher  must  soon  be  empty,  and  there  was  no  more  milk 
in  the  house.  But  what  was  her  surprise,  when,  looking 
into  the  pitcher,  she  saw  that  it  was  still  full  to  the  brim, 
and  that  every  time  the  strangers  emptied  it,  it  refilled 
itself. 

Baucis  whispered  to  Philemon  what  she  had  seen. 
Then  they  watched  more  closely,  and  noticed  that  the 
honey  was  far  sweeter  and  yellower  than  it  had  ever  been 
before,  and  that  the  poor  little  grapes  from  the  stunted 
vine  in  the  garden  had  changed  into  great,  luscious  clus- 
ters of  purple  black. 

Although  husband  and  wife  were  more  than  aston- 
ished at  all  they  saw,  they  kept  silence  about  it,  quietly 
waiting  on  their  guests.  At  last  the  latter  arose  from  the 
table,  saying  they  had  eaten  enough,  and  would  now  like 
a  place  in  which  to  sleep  ;  for  they  had  come  a  great  dis- 
tance that  day,  and  were  very  weary. 

Baucis  hastened  to  lead  the  way  to  the  one  bed  in  the 
little  cottage.  When  the  strangers  had  gone  to  rest,  she 
and  her  husband  lay  down  on  the  kitchen  floor. 

Early  in  the  morning,  Philemon  and  Baucis  arose,  for 
they  wanted  to  kill  their  one  old  goose  for  the  strangers' 
breakfast.  While  they  were  trying  to  catch  it,  the  two 
guests  appeared  in  the  doorway. 

"  Come,"  said  the  elder,  "  follow  us  to  the  hilltop." 
And  there  was  something  so  commanding  in  his  look 


A    WICKED  CITY  129 

and  tone  that  the  couple  followed  in  awe-struck  silence. 
When  they  reached  the  top  of  the  hill,  the  strangers 
turned.  At  sight  of  the  elder  man's  face,  the  two  simple 
people  trembled,  they  scarcely  knew  why. 

Then  he  spoke.  "My  good  people,"  he  said,  "know 
that  the  two  strangers  whom  you  have  entertained  so 
graciously  and  kindly  are  no  less  than  gods.  Look  upon 
your  village ! " 

Philemon  and  Baucis  looked,  and  rubbed  their  eyes,  and 
looked  again  in  wonder.  Where  but  a  few  moments  since 
had  stood  a  village  with  its  many  houses,  there  was  now  a 
lake,  sparkling  in  the  morning  sunlight.  The  wicked  peo- 
ple and  their  dwellings  had  all  been  destroyed. 

But  most  wonderful  of  all,  in  place  of  their  own  little 
cottage,  there  rose  a  large,  magnificent  temple,  with  pillars 
of  marble  and  gold ;  and  the  door  of  the  temple  was  of 
ivory,  inlaid  with  precious  stones. 

Jupiter,  the  god  who  had  worked  the  wonder,  turned 
with  a  smile  to  the  astonished  couple.  "My  good  people," 
said  he,  "  you  alone  of  all  the  village  have  been  saved, 
and  your  humble  cottage  I  have  changed  into  a  temple  of 
the  gods.  'Before  I  leave  this  place,  ask  any  favor  you 
choose,  and  it  shall  be  granted." 

Philemon  and  Baucis  thought  but  an  instant  and  then 
answered  with  one  accord,  "  Let  us,  we  pray  you,  be  the 
guardians  of  your  beautiful  temple  as  long  as  we  live,  and 
let  us  die  together,  that  neither  may  live  to  mourn  the 
other." 

"Your  wish  shall  be  granted,"  said  Jupiter  in  a  kind 
voice;  and  thereupon  he  and  his  companion,  Mercury  - 
whose  name  I  am  sure  you  have  all  long  since  guessed  — 
vanished  from  sight. 


130  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

Philemon  and  Baucis  were  the  faithful  guardians  of  the 
temple  for  many,  many  years.  Whenever  strangers  came 
to  the  place,  they  were  gladly  welcomed  and  kindly  enter- 
tained, for  the  couple  were  just  as  simple  and  hospitable 
in  their  days  of  good  fortune,  as  they  had  been  in  their 
poverty. 

So.  they  grew  very  old  —  so  old  that  life  no  longer 
seemed  beautiful  to  them,  and  they  no  longer  cared  to 
live.  And  one  evening,  as  they  were  standing  hand  in 
hand  in  front  of  the  temple,  thinking  of  the  many  happy 
years  they  had  spent  within  it,  suddenly  they  both  van- 
ished ;  and  in  their  stead  stood  two  majestic  trees,  their 
branches  intertwining  as  though  they  were  whispering 
loving  secrets  to  each  other. 

Thus  the  good  people  had  their  wish,  both  dying  at 
the  same  instant,  and  in  their  stead  flourished  these  two 
mighty  trees,  which  stood  for  centuries  in  front  of  the 
temple  of  Jupiter. 

And  strangers,  who  came  to  the  place  and  heard  the 
beautiful  story  of  Philemon  and  his  wife,  would  hang  gar- 
lands of  flowers  on  the  branches  of  the  trees,  and  sit  beneath 
their  shade,  listening  to  the  wind  murmuring  among  the 
leaves. 


A  DREAM    THAT   CAME   TRUE 

I  AM  going  to  tell  you  the  sad  story  of  Ceyx  and  Hal- 
cyone,  a  king  and  queen  who  loved  each  other  very  dearly. 

After  they  had  lived  together  happily  for  many  years, 
the  king  had  to  journey  to  a  distant  country  to  consult  an 


A  DREAM   THAT  CAME   TRUE  131 

oracle.  He  grieved  much  at  the  thought  of  leaving  Hal- 
cyone  for  so  long  a  time,  and  she  tried  to  make  him  give 
up  the  idea  of  going  so  far  away.  She  warned  him  of  the 
terrors  of  the  sea,  and  the  dangers  of  the  storm-beaten 
waves.  But  at  last,  when  she  found  that  he  was  bent  on 
going,  she  begged  him  to  take  her  with  him.  Ceyx  would 
not  think  of  leading  Halcyone  into  such  danger,  and, 
although  it  grieved  him  to  leave  her,  he  felt  that  he  must 
go  ;  but  he  promised  to  return  just  as  soon  as  he  could. 

The  ship  was  fitted  out,  and  all  too  soon  came  the  day 
for  starting.  Hand  in  hand,  husband  and  wife  went  down 
to  the  place  where  the  boat  was  moored.  There  they 
parted,  with  many  words  of  tenderness.  Through  her 
tears,  Halcyone  pretended  to  laugh,  and  would  talk  only 
of  the  time  when  the  ship  would  return  homeward. 

She  stood  on  the  shore,  waving  her  hand,  until  the 
boat  passed  out  of  sight  and  only  the  water,  with  the 
dazzling  sunlight  on  it,  met  her  tearful  gaze.  Then  she 
went  sadly  back  to  her  palace. 

Meanwhile  the  vessel  bearing  Ceyx  and  his  sailors  sped 
swiftly  along  before  the  wind  ;  the  sails  flapped  merrily, 
while  the  happy-hearted  crew  sang  at  their  work.  Ceyx 
was  thiriking  of  his  dear  wife,  and  praying  that  no  harm 
might  befall  her  while  he  was  away. 

For  a  time  all  went  well ;  but  on  the  fifth  day,  toward 
evening,  dark  clouds  gathered  in  the  sky  and  a  heavy  gale 
arose. 

Soon  the  quiet  waves  had  changed  into  great,  white- 
capped  mountains  of  water,  that  dashed  and  beat  restlessly 
against  the  frail  bark's  sides. 

Night  came  on,  and  the  storm  grew  in  fury.  The  moon 
and  the  stars  were  hidden  in  dense  blackness,  broken  now 


132  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

and  then  by  a  blinding  flash  of  lightning.  The  roaring 
of  the  waves  and  the  rumbling  of  the  thunder  filled  the 
air,  so  that  the  sailors  could  no  longer  hear  the  orders 
that  Ceyx  shouted  to  them. 

Soon  the  sails  flapped  helplessly  on  the  broken  masts, 
and  the  water  came  pouring  into  the  boat  from  all  sides. 
At  last  there  came  a  crash,  followed  by  groans  and  cries, 
and  the  next  instant  the  boat  and  all  the  crew  sank  be- 
neath the  raging  waters. 

Ceyx  alone  clung  to  a  spar  and  escaped  death  for  a 
time.  As  he  drifted  along,  now  rising  on  the  top  of 
a  high  wave,  now  sinking  into  the  foaming  depths  below, 
he  seemed  to  see  before  him,  on  the  water,  the  face  of 
his  beloved  wife  Halcyone. 

At  last  a  large,  green  wave  rose  before  him,  and  he 
had  time  only  to  cry,  in  sad  farewell,  "  Halcyone  !  Hal- 
cyone !  "  before  he  sank  beneath  the  mass  of  water. 

Meanwhile  Halcyone  impatiently  awaited  her  husband's 
return.  Every  morning,  she  went  to  the  temple  of  Juno 
and  prayed  that  her  husband's  life  might  be  spared,  and 
that  he  might  soon  be  restored  to  her. 

At  last  Juno  could  no  longer  bear  to  hear  these  pray- 
ers for  the  safety  of  a  man  who  was  already  dead.  She 
called  her  messenger,  Iris,  and  ordered  her  to  go  to  the 
home  of  the  god  of  sleep,  and  ask  him  to  send  Halcyone 
a  dream  which  would  reveal  to  her  that  Ceyx  was  dead. 

Iris,  in  her  rainbow-colored  robe,  flew  swiftly  through 
the  air,  till  she  came  to  the  dark  cavern  of  Somnus,  the 
god  of  sleep. 

Into  this  cavern  no  ray  of  sunlight  ever  pierced ;  a  dull, 
heavy  darkness  surrounded  it  night  and  day.  No  singing 
of  birds  or  barking  of  dogs  disturbed  the  perfect  quiet 


A  DREAM   THAT  CAME   TRUE  133 

of  the  dark  king's  home.  Before  the  doors  there  grew 
strange  plants,  —  poppies  and  other  herbs  that  send  mor- 
tals to  sleep.  In  the  center  of  the  cavern,  on  a  great 
couch  of  black  ebony,  lay  Somnus  wrapped  in  slumber. 
Around  him,  like  vapor,  flitted  the  shadowy  forms  of 
dreams  and  visions. 

When  the  beautiful  Iris  had  entered  this  dark  cave, 
it  shone  with  a  splendor  of  light  and  color  such  as  had 
never  before  been  known  within  the  place.  Awakened  by 
the  brightness,  Somnus  drowsily  raised  his  head  and  Iris 
spoke : 

"  Sleep,  thou  gentlest  of  the  gods,  who  bringest  rest 
and  peace  to  the  weary  heart  and  mind,  I  come  from  great 
Juno,  who  begs  thee  to  send  to  Halcyone  a  vision  wearing 
the  form  of  Ceyx,  to  tell  her  of  his  shipwreck." 

Then  Iris  flew  back  out  of  the  darkness,  into  the  bright, 
sunlit  sky. 

Somnus  chose  from  among  the  visions  the  gentlest  of 
all,  and  bade  him  take  the  form  of  Ceyx  and  visit  Hal- 
cyone in  the  night.  With  swift,  noiseless  wings  he  sped 
through  the  air  till  he  came  to  the  palace  of  the  queen. 
He  entered,  and  stood  by  the  side  of  her  bed,  wearing  the 
form  of  her  dear  husband,  his  hair  wet  and  dripping,  his 
garments  covered  with  seaweeds  and  shells. 

In  a  sad  voice  he  told  the  story  of  the  shipwreck,  and 
ended  with  these  words :  "  Weep  no  more  for  the  absent 
one ;  for  he  is  dead,  and  can  never  come  back  to  his  be- 
loved Halcyone." 

Halcyone  awoke  with  a  cry.  The  vision  had  been  so 
real  that  she  looked  for  wet  footprints  on  the  floor ;  but 
shadows  leave  no  signs,  and  the  room  was  empty  and 
undisturbed. 


134  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

She  was  so  troubled  by  her  dream  that  she  could  no 
longer  sleep.  She  arose  and  dressed,  and,  as  the  gray  light 
of  morning  broke,  she  hastened  down  to  the  shore,  to  visit 
again  the  spot  where  she  and  her  husband  had  exchanged 
their  last  farewell. 

She  had  been  standing  there  some  time,  when  she  saw, 
far  out  at  sea,  something  white  tossed  about  by  the  waves. 
Nearer  and  nearer  to  the  shore  it  came,  and  with  beat- 
ing heart,  scarcely  knowing  why,  Halcyone  watched  its 
approach. 

At  length  a  large  wave  came  inland,  and  cast  at  her 
feet  the  body  of  Ceyx,  dead  and  cold,  —  the  hair  dripping 
and  covered  with  weeds  and  shells,  just  as  she  had  seen  it 
in  her  dream  the  night  before. 

She  fell  on  her  knees  beside  the  body,  and  weeping, 
cried,  "  O  my  beloved,  my  dream  was  but  too  true ! " 
She  could  not  bear  to  think  of  her  lonely  life  without 
Ceyx,  and  she  felt  that  she  would  rather  be  with  him,  even 
in  dark  Hades,  than  live  in  the  bright  world  without  him. 
So  she  mounted  a  little  rising  knoll  near  the  shore,  and 
sprang  into  the  sea. 

But  she  was  not  drowned.  The  gods  so  pitied  the 
loving  couple  that  they  changed  them  into  white  halcyon 
birds,  or  kingfishers,  as  they  are  sometimes  called,  which 
live  forever  on  the  sea. 

The  sailors  say  that,  even  in  the  stormiest  seas,  there 
are  every  year  seven  calm  days,  during  which  the  water  is 
smooth  as  glass  and  only  the  gentlest  breezes  blow.  Then 
the  halcyon  birds  may  be  seen  floating  on  the  quiet  waters. 
And  because  of  the  name  of  the  birds  that  are  supposed 
to  bring  them,  these  seven  days  are  known  as  the  halcyon 
days. 


IN  ABSENCE  135 


IN   ABSENCE 


WATCH  her  kindly,  stars! 
From  the  sweet,  protecting  skies 
Follow  her  with  tender  eyes, 
Look  so  lovingly  that  she 
Cannot  choose  but  think  of  me  : 

Watch  her  kindly,  stars ! 

Soothe  her  sweetly,  night ! 
On  her  eyes,  o'erwearied,  press 
The  tired  lids,  with  light  caress  ; 
Let  that  shadowy  hand  of  thine 
Ever  in  her  dreams  seem  mine  : 

Soothe  her  sweetly,  night! 


Wake  her  gently,  morn! 
Let  the  notes  of  early  birds 
Seem  like  love's  melodious  words ; 
Every  pleasant  sound  my  dear, 
When  she  stirs  from  sleep,  should  hear: 

Wake  her  gently,  morn  ! 

Kiss  her  softly,  winds  ! 
Softly,  that  she  may  not  miss 
Any  sweet,  accustomed  bliss ; 
On  her  lips,  her  eyes,  her  face, 
Till  I  come  to  take  your  place, 

Kiss  and  kiss  her,  winds ! 

PHCEBE  GARY, 


I  36  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

THE  STORY  OF  THE  GOLDEN  FLEECE 

I.  THE  FLIGHT  ON  THE  RAM's  BACK 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  lived  in  Greece  a  king  who 
had  a  beautiful  wife  named  Nephele.  Nephele  means 
cloud,  and  there  was  something  about  the  fair  young 
queen  that  made  one  think  of  soft,  pink  and  gold-edged 
clouds  on  a  summer's  evening. 

The  king  and  queen  had  two  children,  Phryxus  a  boy, 
and  Helle  a  girl,  and  they  were  all  as  happy  as  the  day 
is  long.  Only  one  thing  marred  their  joy.  In  the  hot 
summer  days,  when  the  sky  was  cloudless  and  staring, 
Nephele  would  grow  thin  and  pale,  and  then  she  would 
leave  her  home  for  a  long  time,  and  come  back  only  when 
the  soft  rain  clouds  were  again  in  the  air. 

Indeed,  some  people  said  that  the  clouds  were  her 
sisters,  and  that  when  they  left  the  sky  she  had  to  travel 
far  away  with  them. 

However  that  was,  there  came  a  time  when  the  king 
began  to  weary  of  his  wife's  long  absences.  Besides, 
there  lived  in  the  town  a  beautiful,  dark-eyed  girl,  Ino,  who 
was  very  much  in  love  with  the  king.  Ino  was  a  witch, 
who  made  the  king  forget  all  about  his  wife  Nephele,  and 
before  long  he  married  the  dark-eyed  girl. 

Now  Ino  hated  Phryxus  and  Helle  because  they  were 
not  her  own  children,  and  because  they  were  beautiful 
and  good.  Soon  she  began  to  ill-treat  them.  They  had 
to  lay  aside  their  rich  clothes  and  wear  old  rags  and  live 
with  the  shepherds'  children ;  and  all'  day  long  they 
guarded  the  flocks  on  the  hillsides. 


THE  GOLDEN  FLEECE  137 

Still  I  do  not  think  that  Phryxus  and  Helle  were  very 
unhappy.  They  loved  to  frolic  in  the  green  fields  all  day 
long,  and  healthy  young  people  do  not  care  much  about 
what  they  eat  or  wear.  Their  only  grief  was  at  the  loss 
of  their  lovely  young  mother  Nephele. 

Nephele  had  now  been  gone  a  long,  long  while.  The 
sky  was  cloudless  day  after  day.  Not  a  drop  of  rain  fell, 
the  fields  became  parched  and  dry,  and  all  the  crops  with- 
ered away.  There  was  not  enough  food  for  the  people, 
and  everywhere  they  were  dying  of  hunger. 

The  king  at  last  sent  messengers  to  an  oracle  in  a  dis- 
tant city,  asking  what  he  must  do  to  bring  back  food  and 
health  to  his  people.  The  wicked  queen  Ino  saw  her 
chance,  and  secretly  bribed  the  messengers  to  pretend 
that  the  oracle  had  said  that  Phryxus  and  Helle  must  be 
killed. 

I  am  afraid  the  messengers  were  not  very  good  men, 
since  they  were  willing  to  help  in  killing  the  children  for 
the  sake  of  a  little  gold. 

In  due  time,  they  came  back  to  the  king  with  their 
false  report,  —  that  the  oracle  had  said  that  only  when 
Phryxus  and  Helle  were  dead  would  plenty  and  comfort 
come  back  to  the  land.  The  king  was  so  bewitched  by 
Ino  that  he  felt  no  grief  at  this  answer,  but  ordered  that 
the  oracle  should  be  obeyed. 

Everything  was  prepared,  and  the  children  were  led 
out,  decked  with  flowers,  as  the  ancients  used  to  deck  the 
young  lambs  they  offered  in  sacrifice  to  the  gods.  As 
they  neared  the  spot  where  they  were  to  be  put  to  death, 
suddenly  there  came  flying  from  the  heavens  a  golden- 
fleeced  ram,  which  the  gods  had  sent,  in  answer  to  Neph- 
ele's  earnest  prayer,  to  save  the  children ;  for,  although 


138  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

Nephele  seemed  to  be  far  away,  she  was  really  watch- 
ing over  her  children  in  sorrow  and  love. 

Quick  as  a  flash,  Phryxus  sprang  upon  the  ram's 
back  with  Helle  behind  him,  and  the  next  minute  they 
were  far  beyond  the  reach  of  the  astonished  people 
below. 

Over  land  and  sea  flew  the  golden  ram  —  faster  and 
faster  every  moment,  until  Helle  became  so  weary  of  the 
dizzy  flight,  that  she  dropped  from  the  ram's  back,  fell 
into  a  narrow  sea  over  which  they  were  passing,  and  was 
drowned.  Since  that  day  this  narrow  sea  has  been  called 
the  Hellespont. 

Phryxus,  however,  clung  to  the  ram's  back,  and  at  last 
they  alighted  together  in  the  land  of  Colchis,  far  away 
from  the  boy's  old  home.  Here  Phryxus  married  the 
king's  daughter.  The -golden  ram,  worn  out  with  the 
long,  hard  journey  over  land  and  sea,  soon  died  ;  and 
Phryxus  hung  its  fleece  on  a  tree  in  a  wood,  and  set  a 
fierce  dragon  to  guard  it. 

In  time  Phryxus  died  and  a  new  king  ruled  in  Colchis  ; 
and  the  greatest  treasure  in  all  the  land  was  the  Golden 
Fleece,  which  hung  in  the  woods,  guarded  night  and  day 
by  the  terrible  dragon. 


THE   CLOUD 

I  BRING  fresh  showers  for  the  thirsting  flowers 

From  the  seas  and  the  streams; 
I  bear  light  shade  for  the  leaves  when  laid 

In  their  noonday  dreams. 


THE  GOLDEN  FLEECE  139 

From  my  wings  are  shaken  the  dews  that  waken 

The  sweet  buds,  every  one, 
When  rocked  to  rest  on  their  mother's  breast, 

As  she  dances  about  the  sun. 

I  wield  the  flail  of  the  lashing  hail, 

And  whiten  the  green  plains  under ; 
And  then  again  I  dissolve  it  in  rain, 

And  laugh  as  I  pass  in  thunder. 

I  am  the  daughter  of  Earth  and  Water, 

And  the  nursling  of  the  Sky ; 
I  pass  through  the  pores  of  the  ocean  and  shores  ; 

I  change,  but  I  cannot  die. 

PERCY  BYSSHE  SHELLEY. 


THE    STORY    OF   THE    GOLDEN    FLEECE 

II.       THE    SAILING    OF   THE    SHIP    ARGO 

LONG  after  Phryxus  had  died,  there  lived  in  a  certain 
country  a  king  and  queen  who  had  but  one  child,  a  boy 
named  Jason.  The  king,  Aeson,  was  a  rather  weak,  good- 
natured  man ;  and  one  day  Jason's  uncle  came  with  a  large 
army,  and  drove  King  Aeson  and  his  family  out  of  their 
own  kingdom.  Then  the  brother  ruled  as  king,  while  the 
rightful  king  lived  far  away,  poor  and  unknown. 

But  in  spite  of  his  poverty  and  friendlessness,  King 
Aeson  brought  up  his  little  son  like  a  prince.  At  that 
time  the  wisest  person  in  the  world  was  a  centaur  named 
Chiron,  and  he  might  be  called  only  half  a  person ;  for, 


140  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

you  remember,  the  centaurs  had  bodies  like  those  of 
horses,  and  heads  and  shoulders  like  men's.  Chiron  was 
very  wise  and  very  good,  and  many  kings  sent  their  sons 
to  him  to  be  educated. 

So  little  Jason  went  to  the  centaur's  cave  on  the  moun- 
tain top,  and  spent  his  youth  there  learning  to  hunt  and 
to  fish  and  to  use  the  sword  and  the  javelin,  and,  what 
was  still  better,  to  be  truthful  and  kind. 

But  at  last  Jason  grew  to  be  a  man,  and  then  Chiron 
told  him  that  he  was  the  son  of  King  Aeson,  who  had 
been  robbed  of  his  throne ;  and  that  he  must  go  and  re- 
claim his  father's  kingdom. 

When  the  time  for  parting  came,  Chiron  went  with 
Jason  to  the  foot  of  the  mountain,  and  said,  "  My  son,  for- 
get not  the  lessons  I  have  taught  you.  Always  speak  and 
act  the  truth,  and  be  kind  to  all  who  need  your  help." 

So  Jason  started  on  his  journey.  When  he  had  gone 
some  distance,  he  came  to  a  stream  much  swollen  by  the 
spring  rains.  On  the  bank  there  stood  an  old  woman 
looking  for  some  means  of  crossing.  Mindful  of  the  cen- 
taur's parting  words,  Jason  spoke  to  her  and  offered  to 
carry  her  across.  The  old  woman  gladly  accepted  the 
offer,  and  Jason  lifted  her  upon  his  shoulders  and  entered 
the  stream.  The  water  dashed  against  him  with  great 
force  ;  he  had  to  struggle  with  all  his  might,  and  was 
out  of  breath  when  119  landed  his  companion  safely  on  the 
other  shore.  But  what  was  Jason's  surprise  to  see,  in 
place  of  the  old  woman  he  had  carried  across,  the  stately 
form  of  Juno,  queen  of  heaven. 

"  Young  man,"  said  she,  "  you  have  a  good  and  brave 
heart,  and  you  shall  not  regret  your  kindness  to  an  old 
woman  ;  "  then  she  vanished. 


THE  GOLDEN  FLEECE  141 

When  Jason  recovered  from  his  surprise,  and  started 
to  go  on,  he  saw,  to  his  dismay,  that  one  of  his  sandals 
had  been  lost  in  the  rushing  water;  so  he  had  to  walk 
the  rest  of  the  way  with  only  one  shoe.  He  came  at  last 
to  the  palace  of  his  father's  brother  and  was  led  before 
the  king. 

The  king  turned  pale  with  fear  at  sight  of  Jason  ;  for 
an  oracle  had  foretold  that  his  kingdom  would  be  taken 
from  him  by  a  youth  wearing  only  one  sandal,  and  one  of 
Jason's  feet,  as  you  know,  was  bare. 

But  the  crafty  king  pretended  to  be  very  glad  indeed 
to  see  his  nephew.  He  bade  him  sit  down  and  rest  him- 
self, and  placed  food  and  drink  before  him.  While  they 
were  eating,  the  king  told  many  stories  of  brave  men  who 
had  lived  long  ago.  "  Ah,  those  days  are  past,"  he  sighed. 
"  Such  heroes  do  not  live  in  our  times." 

"You  are  wrong!"  cried  Jason,  "there  are  many 
heroes  waiting  only  for  the  chance  to  do  great  deeds." 

At  this  the  king  laughed  aloud.  "  Is  it  possible," 
said  he,  "  that  you  have  never  heard  the  story  of  the 
Golden  Fleece  ?  Long  years  have  I  been  waiting  for  a 
hero  to  bring  it  hither,  for  it  would  add  greatly  to  our 
wealth  and  happiness."  And  then  he  told  the  story  of 
Phryxus  and  Helle,  and  of  the  Golden  Fleece  in  the  woods, 
guarded  by  the  sleepless  dragon. 

When  he  had  finished,  Jason  sprang  to  his  feet  and 
cried,  "  I  will  prove  to  you,  oh  king,  that  the  race  of 
heroes  is  not  dead.  I  will  bring  you  the  Golden  Fleece, 
or  die  in  the  attempt." 

The  king  was  very  much  pleased ;  for  this  was  just 
what  he  wanted,  —  to  send  Jason  off  on  a  journey  so  full 
of  danger  that  there  would  be  very  little  chance  of  his 


142  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

ever  coming  back.  But,  of  course,  he  did  not  show  how 
pleased  he  was. 

Jason  built  a  good,  strong  ship,  which  he  called  the 
"  Argo,"  because  Argo  means  "  the  swift."  At  its  prow 
was  a  figurehead  cut  from  an  oak  tree  sacred  to  Juno. 
Juno  had  sent  the  gift  to  show  Jason  that  she  had  not  for- 
gotten her  promise  to  help  him.  It  was  a  very  wonderful 
piece  of  wood,  as  you  will  agree  when  I  tell  you  that  it 
could  speak.  Many  a  time  during  the  long  voyage,  when 
Jason  was  in  great  danger  and  did  not  know  what  to  do, 
he  consulted  that  figurehead  and  he  always  received  good 
advice. 

•When  the  ship  was  finished,  Jason  sent  word  of  his  in- 
tended voyage  to  his  comrades  of  the  old  school  days,  and 
they  all  came  to  join  him.  These  heroes  were  called  the 
Argonauts,  from  the  ship  "  Argo  "  in  which  they  sailed. 

After  a  long  and  dangerous  voyage,  during  which  there 
happened  many  wonderful  things  about  which  you  will 
some  day  hear,  the  Argonauts  arrived  at  Colchis,  the  land 
of  the  Golden  Fleece. 


THE   ARROW   AND   THE   SONG 

I  SHOT  an  arrow  into  the  air, 
It  fell  to  earth,  I  knew  not  where; 
For  so  swiftly  it  flew,  the  sight 
Could  not  follow  it  in  its  flight. 

I  breathed  a  song  into  the  air, 
It  fell  to  earth,  I  knew  not  where ; 
For  who  has  sight  so  keen  and  strong, 
That  it  can  follow  the  flight  of  song? 


THE  GOLDEN  FLEECE  143 

Long,  long  afterwards,  in  an  oak 
I  found  the  arrow,  still  unbroke ; 
And  the  song,  from  beginning  to  end, 
I  found  again  in  the  heart  of  a  friend. 

HENRY  WADSWORTH  LONGFELLOW. 


THE    STORY   OF    THE    GOLDEN    FLEECE 

III.   HOW  THE  FLEECE  WAS  BROUGHT  BACK  TO  GREECE 

THE  morning  after  their  arrival  at  Colchis,  the  Greeks 
were  brought  into  the  palace  of  the  king.  The  king  had 
two  children,  a  little  boy  of  whom  he  was  very  fond,  and 
a  dark-eyed,  dark-haired  maiden,  Medea,  who  was  a  witch 
and  knew  many  magic  arts. 

The  king  was  seated  on  his  throne,  with  his  little  son 
at  his  feet  and  Medea  at  his  right  hand,  when  the  Argo- 
nauts were  brought  before  him.  Jason  was  asked  what 
his  errand  in  Colchis  was ;  and  when  he  answered  that  he 
had  come  to  take  the  Golden  Fleece  back  to  Greece,  the 
king  laughed  aloud,  and  said,  "  You  have  come  on  a  very 
bold  mission,  for  only  he  who  performs  aright  the  three 
tasks  I  have  set  .can  carry  away  the  Golden  Fleece." 

And  the  tone  in  which  the  king  gave  this  answer 
showed  that  he  was  not  afraid  of  losing  the  Golden  Fleece. 
But  Jason  was  not  to  be  so  easily  discouraged,  and  he 
asked  the  king  to  tell  him  what  the  three  tasks  were. 

"The  first  is  to  yoke  two  fierce,  fire-breathing  bulls  to 
the  plough,  and  with  them  to  till  four  acres  of  land.  The 
next  is  to  sow  some  dragon's  teeth  and  to  conquer  all  the 


144  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

armed  men  that  will  then  spring  up  from  the  earth.  And 
the  third  is  to  kill  the  fierce  dragon  which  guards  the 
Golden  Fleece  in  the  wood,  and  never  sleeps  by  night  or 
by  day.  When  you  have  succeeded  in  doing  these  three 
things,  you  may  take  the  Golden  Fleece  back  with  you 
to  Greece."  Thus  spake  the  king  and  then  dismissed 
Jason. 

Although  Jason  would  not  let  the  king  see  it,  he  was 
just  a  little  discouraged  when  he  heard  what  the  tasks 
were.  He  walked  away  from  the  palace,  down  toward  the 
shore  where  his  boat  was  anchored,  and  he  thought  of 
Juno's  promise  and  wished  that  she  would  help  him  now. 

When  he  came  to  the  ship,  he  found  that  there  was 
help  awaiting  him.  For  Medea,  the  king's  daughter,  had 
fallen  in  love  with  him,  and  had  come  to  talk  with  him 
and  to  offer  him  her  aid. 

She  promised  to  give  Jason  advice  that  would  help  him 
to  do  the  things  that  seemed  impossible,  if  in  return  he 
would  make  her  his  wife  and  take  her  back  with  him  to 
his  home  in  Greece. 

It  may  seem  strange  that  Medea  was  willing  to  leave 
her  home  and  all  the  people  who  loved  her,  to  go  so 
far  away  with  this  stranger.  Indeed,  the  girl  herself 
hardly  knew  why  she  did  it  ;  but  the  truth  was  that  Juno 
had  not  forgotten  her  promise  to  help  Jason,  and  the  only 
way  she  could  do  it  was  by  making  Medea  love  him  so 
much  that  she  would  be  willing  to  give  up  everything  for 
his  sake.  And  so  it  really  was  Juno  who  was  helping 
Jason. 

The  king's  daughter  gave  Jason  some  magic  drugs  to 
make  him  proof  against  harm  from  fire  or  sword,  and  then 
told  him  just  what  he  must  do  to  overcome  the  fierce 


THE  GOLDEN  FLEECE  145 

bulls  and  the  armed  men.  After  she  left  him,  he  paceti 
up  and  down  the  seashore  for  a  long  time,  thinking  about 
Medea,  and  the  tasks  that  the  morrow  would  bring. 

The  next  morning  all  the  people  of  Colchis  went  in  a 
great  crowd  to  the  field  where  Jason  was  to  meet  his 
death,  as  they  thought.  In  the  midst  of  them  sat  the 
king  himself,  with  Medea  at  his  right  hand.  In  all  that 
vast  crowd,  she  was  the  only  one  who  dared  to  hope  that 
Jason  would  be  successful. 

As  soon  as  Jason  entered  the  field,  the  two  bulls  came 
snorting  and  bellowing  toward  him.  If  you  could  have 
seen  the  creatures,  you  would  have  believed,  as  all  the 
people  did,  that  Jason's  last  hour  had  come. 

They  were  great,  ugly  creatures,  with  hoofs  of  brass, 
and  horns  pointed  with  iron.  As  they  came  tramping 
along,  making  the  ground  tremble  at  each  step  of  their 
brazen  hoofs,  they  breathed  out  curling  flames  from  their 
nostrils,  so  that  the  fields  and  the  whole  air  seemed  on 
fire. 

But  Jason  did  not  feel  the  heat  of  the  flames,  thanks 
to  Medea's  magic  drug.  He  went  up  close  to  the  angry 
creatures,  and  seizing  them  by  the  horns,  dashed  their 
heads  together  until  the  bulls  were  stunned.  Then  he 
quickly  slipped  the  yoke  over  their  heads.  The  bulls 
were  now  as  gentle  as  cows,  and  Jason  ploughed  the  four 
acres  in  a  short  time. 

Next  he  sowed  the  dragon's  teeth  in  the  soil  he  had 
just  turned  up,  and  in  less  time  than  it  takes  to  tell,  a 
mass  of  helmets  began  to  show  above  the  ground,  just  as 
the  little  leaves  pierce  through  the  soil  in  the  springtime. 
But,  whereas  the  leaves  are  followed  by  pretty  blossoms, 
the  helmets  covered  a  very  ugly  crop  of  fierce,  armed  sol- 


146  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

diers,  who  all  turned  upon  Jason  at  once.  Remembering 
Medea's  advice,  he  seized  a  large  stone  and  hurled  it  into 
the  midst  of  his  foes. 

This  made  them  turn  from  Jason  against  one  another, 
for  each  one  thought  it  was  his  neighbor  who  had  thrown 
the  stone.  In  a  few  minutes,  they  were  all  fighting  and 
struggling  in  a  confused  mass,  and  they  fought  so  fiercely 
that  in  a  short  time  the  field  was  strewn  with  the  dead 
bodies  of  the  men  who  had  sprung  up  from  the  dragon's 
teeth. 

Of  course,  the  people  were  all  rejoiced  at  Jason's  suc- 
cess, but  the  king  looked  angry  and  sullen.  He  knew 
very  well  that  Jason  could  not  have  succeeded  except  by 
the  aid  of  magic,  and  he  suspected  that  in  some  way  Medea 
had  helped  the  hero.  Therefore,  when  Jason  asked  for 
leave  to  begin  his  third  task,  the  king  answered  that  he 
had  done  enough  for  one  day,  and  that  he  should  rest 
until  the  morrow. 

But  in  the  evening,  Medea,  who  could  see  that  her 
father  suspected  her,  told  Jason  he  must  kill  the  dragon 
that  night  and  sail  for  home ;  for  she  had  noticed  her 
father's  angry  look  and  she  feared  that  he  meant  some 
harm  to  the  Argonauts. 

Again  she  gave  him  a  drug,  to  put  the  dragon  to  sleep, 
and  Jason  made  his  way  alone  into  the  dark  wood.  He 
had  not  gone  far,  when  he  noticed  a  golden  light  among 
the  forest  trees,  and  he  knew  that  he  must  be  near  the 
treasure  he  was  seeking. 

So  he  went  along  carefully,  and  when  he  came  within 
a  few  feet  of  the  dragon,  he  threw  the  magic  drug  into  its 
eyes  ;  and  after  a  few  moments,  the  dragon  was  fast 
asleep.  Jason  thereupon  cut  off  the  creature's  head  and 


"  He  threw  the  magic  drug  into  its  eyes.1 


HOW  A  BOY  LOYED  A  STAG 

seized  the  Golden  Fleece  from  the  branches  overhead, 
where  it  hung,  making  the  forest  bright  as  though  the 
sun  were  shining  upon  it ;  then  he  hastened  back  to  his 
ship,  where  Medea  and  his  companions  were  anxiously 
awaiting  him. 

In  a  very  short  time,  the  anchor  was  lifted,  and  with 
their  sails  flapping  merrily  in  the  breeze,  the  Greeks  had 
started  on  their  homeward  way,  carrying  the  Golden 
Fleece  with  them. 

After  a  long,  hard  journey,  full  of  adventures,  they  at 
last  reached  home.  Jason  banished  his  uncle  from  the 
kingdom,  and  set  his  father  back  on  the  throne.  Thus 
he  fulfilled  his  vow,  and  King  Aeson,  grown  young  again 
through  happiness  at  his  son's  return,  ruled  in  peace  for 
many  a  year 


HOW   A    BOY    LOVED    A    STAG 

ONCE  Apollo  dearly  loved  a  lad  whose  name  was 
Cyparissus,  and  -the  youth,  in  turn,  was  very  fond  of 
Apollo.  He  liked  to  hunt,  and  he  loved  the  woods  and 
the  brooks  and  all  the  shy,  wild  creatures  that  lived  in  the 
forests.  All  these  things  he  loved,  but  dearer  to  him  than 
anything  else  was  a  stag  that  lived  in  the  grove  where  he 
hunted. 

The  stag  was  a  beautiful  creature,  with  great,  soft 
eyes  and  branching  antlers.  He  belonged  to  the  nymphs 
of  the  grove,  and  they  had  hung  about  his  neck  a  golden 
necklace,  studded  with  shining  gems.  He  was  the  pet  of 
all  the  people  who  lived  near  that  place,  and  was  so  tame 


150  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

that  he  would  go  around  from  door  to  door  and  offer  his 
glossy  neck  to  be  patted.  He  was  afraid  of  no  one,  for 
every  one  loved  him  and  was  kind  to  him. 

Cyparissus  and  the  stag  were  together  from  morning 
till  night.  They  wandered  through  the  woods,  seeking  the 
shady  nooks  and  the  little  streams,  where  the  stag  could 
see  his  beautiful  antlers  reflected  and  could  drink  the 
clear  water.  The  boy  would  weave  garlands  of  flowers  for 
the  stag's  neck ;  or,  springing  lightly  on  his  playfellow's 
back,  he  would  speed  through  the  woods  more  swiftly  than 
the  wind. 

Apollo  often  joined  this  happy  pair  in  the  forest,  and 
laughed  and  played  with  them,  just  as  though  he,  too, 
were  a  child. 

One  hot  summer's  day,  Cyparissus  and  the  stag  had 
been  wandering  through  the  grove  for  many  hours,  and  at 
noon  they  paused  in  a  shady  spot  by  the  side  of  a  stream. 
The  stag  was  resting  on  the  soft  grass,  under  a  tree,  and 
Cyparissus  stood  a  little  way  off,  practicing  with  his  bow 
and  arrow. 

Just  how  it  happened  he  never  knew  ;  but  suddenly,  as 
he  was  fitting  the  arrow  to  the  bow,  his  foot  slipped,  the 
sharp  steel  glided  off  sidewise,  and,  with  a  little  hiss,  it 
entered  the  poor  stag's  breast. 

Cyparissus,  filled  with  horror,  rushed  to  his  compan- 
ion's side  and  drew  the  cruel  steel  from  his  breast.  But 
it  was  too  late  —  the  arrow  had  done  its  work  only  too 
well.  The  wounded  stag  lifted  its  head,  and  gave  the  boy 
a  last,  loving,  questioning  look,  then  fell  back  on  the  grass 
—  dead. 

Poor  Cyparissus  !  He  had  killed  the  creature  he  loved 
most  in  all  the  world,  and  his  grief  was  sad  to  see.  He 


HOIV  A  BOY  LOVED  A  STAG  151 

threw  himself  on  the  ground  beside  the  dead  stag,  kissed 
the  soft  forehead  over  and  over  again,  and  moaned  aloud. 
He  felt  that  he  could  not  live  without  his  dear  playfellow, 
and  was  ready  to  pierce  himself  with  the  same  arrow  that 
had  slain  the  stag. 

But  Apollo,  who  heard  his  friend's  voice  weeping  in  the 
forest,  came  hastening  to  the  spot.  When  he  saw  what 
had  happened,  he  tried  to  console  Cyparissus,  telling  him 
that  he  must  not  blame  himself  for  what  had  been  a  mere 
accident ;  and  at  last  he  induced  him  to  give  up  the  arrow 
with  which  he  had  meant  to  kill  himself.  But  the  poor 
boy  wept  and  mourned,  and  would  not  be  comforted,  and 
at  last  he  died  of  grief. 

Apollo  grieved  much  over  his  little  friend's  sad  death  ; 
he  wept  over  the  lifeless  body,  and  loosed  the  boy's  arm 
from  around  the  stag's  neck  and  cried,  "  Never  again 
shall  I  hear  your  merry  laughter  ringing  through  the 
woods,  nor  see  you  wandering  in  the  grove  with  your 
playmate.  The  birds  will  miss  your  happy  song,  and  the 
leaves  and  the  flowers  will  seem  less  bright  now  that  you 
are  gone  from  them.  All  the  shy,  wild  creatures  of  the 
grove  will  steal  from  their  hiding  places,  and  wonder  that 
you  no  longer  come  to  greet  them.  But  I  will  mourn  for 
you  forever,  Cyparissus,  and  you  shall  mourn  for  oth- 
ers, and  shall  henceforth  be  the  emblem  of  sorrow  and 
death." 

Then  Apollo  changed  Cyparissus  into  a  cypress  tree, 
that  he  might  continue  to  live  in  the  green  forests,  with 
the  birds  and  the  flowers  he  loved  so  dearly. 

And  to  this  day  the  cypress  tree  is  planted  above 
graves  as  an  emblem  of  grief. 


152  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 


EARTH    TO    EARTH 

His  hands  with  earthly  work  are  done, 
His  feet  are  done  with  roving, — 

We  bring  him  now  to  thee,  and  ask 
The  loved  to  take  the  loving. 

Part  back  thy  mantle,  fringed  with  green, 
Broidered  with  leaf  and  blossom, 

And  lay  him  tenderly  to  sleep 
Dear  Earth,  upon  thy  bosom. 

Thy  cheerful  birds,  thy  liberal  flowers, 

Thy  woods  and  waters,  only, 
Gave  him  their  sweet  companionship, 

And  made  his  hours  less  lonely. 

Then  part  thy  mantle,  fringed  with  green, 
Broidered  with  leaf  and  blossom, 

And  lay  him  tenderly  to  sleep 
Dear  Earth,  upon  thy  bosom. 

PHCEBE  GARY. 


A    SEA   GOD  AND  A  WICKED   ENCHANTRESS 

THERE  was  once  a  poor  fisherman  named  Glaucus,  who 
earned  his  daily  bread  by  selling  the  fish  he  caught.  One 
day  his  net  felt  very  heavy,  and  when  he  drew  it  in,  he 
saw  that  he  had  caught  a  great  number  of  fine  fish.  He 
emptied  them  out  upon  the  grass  by  his  side,  and  then 
prepared  his  net  for  another  throw. 

But  the  fish  he  had  caught  began  flapping  about  and 


A  SEA   GOD  153 

nibbling  at  the  grass  beneath  them,  and  in  a  few  minutes, 
what  was  the  fisherman's  surprise  to  see  them  all  leap 
back  into  the  water  and  swim  away ! 

"  Why,  what  wonderful  grass  that  must  be ! "  cried 
Glaucus,  and  he  took  up  a  handful  and  began  to  chew  it. 
As  soon  as  the  juice  entered  his  blood,  a  strange  feeling 
of  restlessness  came  over  him  ;  and  at  length  he  had  such 
a  mad  longing  to  throw  himself  into  the  clear  water,  that 
almost  before  he  knew  what  he  was  doing,  he  plunged  into 
the  sea. 

Neptune,  the  god  of  the  ocean,  saw  all  that  was  pass- 
ing ;  and  as  Glaucus  sank  beneath  the  surface,  he  caught 
him  in  his  arms,  and,  taking  him  into  his  ocean  palace, 
changed  him  from  a  poor  fisherman  into  a  god  of  the 
sea. 

Glaucus  now  lived  entirely  in  the  water — that  very 
water  he  had  loved  so  dearly  when  he  was  a  fisherman. 
His  beard  grew  long,  and  of  the  color  of  the  seaweed 
that  the  tide  washes  ashore  ;  his  hair,  which  streamed 
behind  him,  looked  almost  like  the  waves  on  which  it 
floated.  He  was  made  the  god  of  the  fishermen  ;  and, 
remembering  his  own  struggles  in  former  days,  he  sent 
many  a  poor  fisherman  home  with  a  full  net  and  a  happy 
heart. 

So  years  passed,  until  one  day,  as  the  sea  god  was 
floating  on  the  top  of  the  waves,  he  saw  a  beautiful  maiden 
walking  along  the  shore. 

She  looked  so  modest  and  gentle  that  Glaucus'  heart 
was  deeply  moved,  and  he  followed  her  until  she  came  to 
a  low  hill.  She  climbed  to  the  top  and  then  turned  to 
give  a  parting  look  at  the  sea,  which  she  loved  very  much  ; 
but  she  did  not  notice  the  dark  face  watching  her  so 


154  STORIES  OF  LONG   AGO 

closely,  and,  turning  down  the  hill,  she  disappeared  from 
view. 

Glaucus  sighed  and  slowly  swam  back  to  his  home 
under  the  sea. 

The  next  day  he  came  again  to  the  spot,  and  as  before, 
the  nymph,  whose  name  was  Scylla,  was  walking  by  the 
side  of  the  sea.  Again  he  followed  her,  watching  her 
until  she  disappeared  behind  the  little  hill. 

So  it  went  on,  day  after  day,  and  the  more  Glaucus 
saw  of  Scylla,  the  more  he  loved  her.  At  last,  one  even- 
ing, as  Scylla  was  about  to  climb  the  hill,  Glaucus  called 
to  her.  She  turned  around  and  was  very  much  surprised 
to  see  that  strange  figure,  half  man  and  half  fish. 

She  stepped  nearer  to  the  water  and  said,  "  Pray,  what 
are  you,  a  man  or  a  sea  monster  ?  "  Then  Glaucus  re- 
lated his  whole  story,  and  ended  by  telling  her  how  much 
he  loved  her.  But  Scylla  did  not  care  for  this  strange- 
looking  creature,  whom  she  saw  that  day  for  the  first 
time ;  and  she  turned  away  from  him,  and  left  him  sad 
and  hopeless. 

For  many  days  he  came  in  vain  to  the  spot  where 
he  had  so  often  seen  Scylla,  but  the  maiden  no  longer 
walked  there.  Then  Glaucus  tried  another  way  of  win- 
ning her. 

Near  his  home  there  lived  an  enchantress  whose  name 
was  Circe.  He  hastened  to  her  palace,  told  her  his  story, 
and  begged  for  a  love  potion,  —  a  drink,  which  should 
make  Scylla  love  him.  Now  it  so  happened  that  Circe 
herself  had  for  a  long  time  been  in  love  with  Glaucus  ; 
so  she  told  him  that  Scylla  was  not  worthy  of  his  love, 
and  that  if  he  would  stay  in  her  palace,  she  would  make 
him  happy  all  the  rest  of  his  life.  But  Glaucus  answered, 


A  SEA  GOD  155 

"  Sooner  shall  seaweed  grow  on  the  mountain  tops  and 
trees  in  the  ocean,  than  my  love  for  Scylla  change  while 
she  is  alive."  Then  at  last  Circe  saw  that  she  must  at  least 
pretend  to  grant  his  wish. 

In  her  heart  she  hated  Scylla,  and  she  had  made  up 
her  mind  to  do  something  very  cruel.  She  handed  Glaucus 
a  little  flask  filled  with  a  colorless  liquid,  and  told  him  to 
throw  it  into  the  water  where  Scylla  bathed. 

Glaucus  hastened  home,  and  finding  the  spring  where 
Scylla  usually  took  her  evening  bath,  he  emptied  the 
little  flask,  which  he  thought  so  precious,  and  then  went 
away  with  a  happy  heart.  Poor  Glaucus  !  He  little  knew 
what  a  mischief-making  witch  Circe  was. 

Toward  evening  Scylla  came  to  the  little  spring,  and 
throwing  off  her  robe,  slipped  into  the  clear  water  to  en- 
joy its  cool  freshness. 

But  the  mixture  Circe  had  given  Glaucus  wa*s  most  hor- 
rible, for  it  bred  monsters.  Scarcely  had  Scylla  stepped 
into  the  water  when  her  legs  began  to  change  their 
shape  ;  and  at  last  she  screamed  aloud  in  terror,  for  where 
her  limbs  had  been,  there  were  now  six  horrible,  loud- 
mouthed, fierce-looking  dogs. 

At  first  she  thought  they  were  only  in  the  water,  and 
she  rushed  to  the  shore.  When  she  saw  that  the  mon- 
sters were  part  of  her  own  body,  she  ran  screaming  to 
the  top  of  the  hill,  and  threw  herself  headlong  into  the 
foaming  waves  of  the  sea. 

She  was  changed  to  a  rock,  but  ever  after,  that  part  of 
the  sea  was  dangerous  to  sail  through,  and  many  people 
who  have  narrowly  escaped  shipwreck  there  have  told  how 
they  heard  the  loud,  fierce  barking  of  dogs  from  the  base 
of  the  rock. 


156  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

Poor  Glaucus  mourned  for  Scylla  many  a  day,  and 
never  again  went  near  the  cruel  Circe.  To  this  day, 
the  rock  Scylla  stands  in  the  blue  Mediterranean,  and  is 
shunned  by  all  who  sail  upon  the  sea. 


THE   SEA   HATH   ITS   PEARLS 

THE  sea  hath  its  pearls, 

The  heaven  hath  its  stars ; 
But  my  heart,  my  heart, 

My  heart  hath  its  love. 

Great  are  the  sea  and  the  heaven, 

Yet  greater  is  my  heart; 
And  fairer  than  pearls  and  stars 

Flashes  and  beams  my  love. 

Thou  little,  youthful  maiden, 

Come  unto  my  great  heart ; 
My  heart,  and  the  sea,  and  the  heaven 

Are  melting  away  with  love  ! 

HENRY  WADSWORTH  LONGFELLOW, 


A   YOUTH   WHO    WAS    CHANGED    INTO   A 
FLOWER 

You  remember  the  sad  story  about  Apollo's  friend 
Cyparissus,  and  how  the  sun  god  grieved  when  the  poor 
boy  died.  This  story  is  about  another  boy  whom  Apollo 
loved  very  dearly. 


"He  Hurled  his  disc  high  into  the  air.' 


HYACINTHUS  1 59 

Hyacinthus  was  his  name,  and  I  think  you  will  agree 
with  me  that  it  is  a  very  pretty  name.  You  know  a  flower 
with  a  name  very  much  like  that  ?  Perhaps  they  have 
something  to  do  with  each  other.  Let  us  read  the  story 
and  see. 

Hyacinthus  was  a  happy,  sunny-hearted  lad,  who  seemed 
to  have  no  care  in  the  wide  world.  Perhaps  that  is  why 
Apollo  loved  him  so  much  ;  or  perhaps  he  reminded  him 
of  that  other  boy  who  had  died  long  before ;  or  perhaps 
it  was  just  because  Apollo  had  to  love  somebody,  and  he 
might  just  as  well  choose  this  merry  little  hunter  whom 
he  met  so  often  in  the  woods. 

But  whatever  the  reason  was,  it  is  certain  that  Apollo 
did  love  Hyacinthus  very,  very  dearly.  He  would  leave 
his  beautiful  temples,  and  forget  all  about  the  people  who 
were  worshiping  him  and  be  content  to  wander  in  the 
woods  by  the  side  of  his  little  friend ;  and  he  was  happy 
to  carry  his  hunting  nets,  or  hold  his  dogs  for  a  while. 

Hyacinthus  did  not  think  it  at  all  strange  that  Apollo 
should  like  to  do  these  things  for  him.  For  love  is  so 
wonderful  a  thing,  that  it  makes  people  forget  all  differ- 
ences of  birth  or  rank. 

So  Apollo  and  Hyacinthus  hunted  together  very  hap- 
pily and  neither  of  them  ever  thought  of  the  wide  difference 
between  a  little  hunter  boy  and  a  great  god  of  heaven. 

One  day,  while  they  were  resting  in  a  shady  nook, 
Apollo  proposed  to  play  a  game  of  quoits.  Quoits  was  a 
game  of  which  the  people  of  those  days  were  very  fond, 
-as  fond  as  boys  are  nowadays  of  cricket  and  of  ball. 
The  quoits  were  flat  circular  discs  about  twelve  inches 
across ;  they  were  made  of  iron  or  some  other  heavy  sub- 
stance. The  players  hurled  their  discs  into  the  air,  the 


1 60  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

object  of  the  game  being  to  see  who  could  throw  the 
quoits  the  farthest. 

Apollo  and  his  companion  were  both  fond  of  the  game, 
and  they  began  to  play,  and  were  enjoying  themselves 
very  much.  Apollo  hurled  his  disc  high  into  the  air,  and 
it  shot  up  through  the  clouds,  and,  after  a  long  pause,  fell 
to  the  ground  with  a  crash. 

Then  Hyacinthus,  eager  to  show  that  he  was  as  good 
a  player  as  his  friend,  hurried  forward  to  pick  it  up.  But 
the  disc  had  struck  the  ground  with  such  force  that  it 
rebounded,  and  hit  the  thoughtless  boy  on  the  forehead. 

Stunned  by  the  blow,  Hyacinthus  with  a  little  cry  of 
pain,  sank  to  the  ground.  Apollo  rushed  to  his  side,  and 
kneeling  down,  tried  to  stanch  the  wound  with  his  hand, 
while  he  tenderly  caressed  the  lad.  He  was  so  frightened 
that  he  was  almost  as  pale  as  the  wounded  Hyacinthus. 

When  he  saw  that  he  could  not  stop  the  wound  from 
bleeding,  he  quickly  gathered  some  herbs  and  pressed 
their  juice  between  the  dying  boy's  lips.  But  it  was  of  no 
use  —  Hyacinthus  was  fast  sinking,  his  head  drooping  like 
a  bruised  flower,  and  like  a  flower  he  faded  away. 

Apollo's  grief  was  sad  to  see.  He  could  not  believe, 
at  first,  that  the  boy  he  loved  so  dearly  was  really  dead, 
and  he  called  him  by  name  again  and  again.  He  would 
gladly  have  died  for  him,  and  he  did  not  care  to  live  with- 
out him  ;  but  you  know  the  gods  could  never  die.  He  lay 
on  the  ground  by  the  side  of  his  dead  friend,  and  wept 
and  moaned,  so  that  it  would  have  made  you  cry,  too,  if 
you  had  seen  him. 

Then,  at  last,  he  seized  his  lyre,  for  now  that  Hya- 
cinthus was  gone,  he  turned  to  this  old  friend  for  comfort. 
And  he  sang  a  song  of  love  and  mourning  for  the  boy, 


TO  A  FRIEND  l6l 

so  sadly  beautiful  that  all  the  birds  in  the  forest  were 
hushed,  and  even  the  wind  in  the  tree  tops  seemed  to 
sigh  in  sympathy. 

When  he  had  finished,  he  stooped  down  and  tenderly 
touched  the  boy's  forehead  with  his  hand ;  in  an  instant 
the  lifeless  body  vanished,  and  in  its  stead  had  sprung 
up  a  lovely,  purple  blossom.  It  was  almost  the  color  of 
the  blood  that  had  flowed  from  the  boy's  forehead. 

And  since  that  day,  so  long  ago,  the  beautiful  purple 
hyacinth  comes  with  the  first  breath  of  spring,  to  remind 
us  of  the  story  of  the  great  god  of  the  sun  and  the  little 
lad  whom  he  loved  so  dearly. 


TO   A   FRIEND 

GREEN  be  the  turf  above  thee, 

Friend  of  my  better  days  ! 
None  knew  thee  but  to  love  thee, 

Nor  named  thee  but  to  praise. 

Tears  fell,  when  thou  wert  dying, 

From  eyes  unused  to  weep, 
And  long,  where  thou  art  lying, 

Will  tears  the  cold  turf  steep. 

When  hearts,  whose  truth  was  proven, 

Like  thine,  are  laid  in  earth, 

There  should  a  wreath  be  woven 

To  tell  the  world  their  worth. 

FITZ-GREENE  HALLECK. 


1 62  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 


A   WONDERFUL    SCULPTOR 

IN  the  blue  Mediterranean  Sea,  which  washes  the 
southern  shore  of  Europe,  there  is  a  green  island  called 
Cyprus.  Once  there  lived  on  this  island  a  great  sculptor, 
named  Pygmalion,  who  spent  his  days  in  carving  statues 
from  shapeless  blocks  of  marble. 

His  work  was  all  in  all  to  him,  and  he  took  no  inter- 
est in  the  outside  world.  Many  women  of  Cyprus  would 
have  been  glad  to  marry  this  maker  of  beautiful  things, 
but  Pygmalion  cared  for  none  of  them.  The  women  he 
created  in  marble  seemed  to  him  far  more  lovely  than 
any  of  the  living  ones. 

So  he  passed  his  time  singing  at  his  work,  and  per- 
fectly happy  in  living  for  that  alone. 

At  last,  one  day,  a  beautiful  thought  came  into  his 
mind.  Pygmalion  seized  his  chisel  and  hammer  to  express 
it  in  marble,  just  as  a  poet  might  have  expressed  it  in  song. 

From  early  morning  till  the  last  ray  of  sunlight  faded 
from  the  sky,  the  sculptor  stood  before  his  block  of  mar- 
ble, and  worked  away  happily.  Gradually,  a  most  beauti- 
ful figure  began  to  take  shape  in  the  stone.  Each  day  it 
stood  out  more  and  more  clearly,  till  at  last,  one  evening, 
the  light  of  the  setting  sun  fell  around  the  statue  of  the 
loveliest  young  girl  that  you  could  imagine. 

It  did  not  seem  like  an  image ;  the  rosy  sunset  gave 
the  marble  a  soft  tinge  that  made  it  look  like  real  flesh. 
The  mouth  was  half  open,  as  if  the  maiden  were  about 
to  speak  ;  one  foot  was  outstretched,  and  it  seemed  as 
though  the  next  minute  she  must  'step  down  from  her 
pedestal  and  move  about  like  any  other  woman. 


'The  great  goddess  o*  'ove." 


A   WONDERFUL  SCULPTOR  165 

As  Pygmalion  looked  at  the  finished  work,  his  heart 
beat  fast,  and  his  face  became  flushed  with  excitement. 
The  more  he  looked,  the  more  restless  he  grew,  and  it 
was  hard  to  tear  himself  away  from  the  marble  image. 
He  named  his  statue  Galatea,  for  he  felt  almost  as  though 
it  were  a  real  woman. 

The  next  morning  he  was  up  early  and  again  standing 
before  the  statue.  So  it  went  on  from  day  to  day.  Pyg- 
malion had  fallen  in  love  with  his  own  work ;  and  some- 
times, as  he  kissed  the  beautiful  lips  or  caressed  the 
graceful  hand,  it  seemed  to  him  that  the  statue  was 
beginning  to  breathe. 

He  could  no  longer  sing  at  his  work  ;  in  fact,  he  could 
no  longer  work,  for  he  loved  that  fair  image  so  dearly  that 
he  spent  all  his  time  kneeling  before  it,  and  marveling  at 
the  beauty  he  had  wrought. 

So  the  days  passed  on,  until  the  time  of  the  great 
festival  of  Venus  was  at  hand.  Venus,  you  know,  was  the 
goddess  of  love,  and  once  a  year,  the  youths  and  maidens 
of  Cyprus  had  a  great  celebration  in  her  honor. 

On  this  day  Pygmalion  joined  the  train  of  young  men 
and  at  last  stood  before  the  altar  in  the  temple  of  Venus. 

As  he  stood  there,  he  began  to  pray.  He  prayed  that 
Venus,  the  great  goddess  of  love,  would  take  pity  on  him ; 
and  since  he  could  never  care  for  any  other  woman,  that 
she  who  could  work  such  wonders  would  change  his  mar- 
ble statue  into  a  real,  living  maiden. 

As  he  finished  his  prayer,  the  little  flame  on  the  altar 
leaped  up  thrice,  and  then  flickered  down  again.  Among 
the  ancient  people,  this  was  a  sign  that  the  god  or  goddess 
appealed  to  had  heard  the  prayer,  and  would  speedily 
grant  it. 


1 66  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

Full  of  joy,  yet  at  the  same  time  fearing  that  his  hope 
would  be  disappointed,  Pygmalion  hastened  home  and  en- 
tered the  room  where  the  marble  girl  gleamed  from  her 
pedestal. 

Throwing  his  arm  around  her,  he  gave  her  a  loving  kiss, 
and,  just  as  the  sleeping  beauty  in  the  fairy  story  awoke  at 
her  true  lover's  kiss,  so  Galatea  opened  her  eyes,  looked 
at  Pygmalion  with  wonder,  and  slowly  stepped  down  from 
the  pedestal.  She  loved  him,  of  course ;  for  Venus  had 
not  only  turned  the  marble  to  life,  —  she  had  also  made 
Galatea  return  the  sculptor's  great  love. 

Pygmalion  was  very  happy,  and  when  he  had  given 
thanks  to  Venus  for  her  great  kindness  to  him,  he  and 
Galatea  were  married  in  the  temple  of  the  goddess,  at  the 
altar  where  Pygmalion  first  offered  up  his  prayer. 

They  led  a  very  happy  life  ;  but  though  Pygmalion 
carved  many  more  beautiful  statues,  he  never  again  wrought 
anything  so  lovely  as  the  maiden  who  had  now  become  his 
wife 


A  MUSICAL  CONTEST  OF  LONG  AGO 

MOST  of  my  young  readers  know  the  wonderful  story 
of  King  Midas  and  the  Golden  Touch,  how  everything  he 
laid  his  hands  on  was  turned  to  shining,  yellow  metal. 
But  there  is  another  story  about  him,  which,  though  not 
so  well  known  as  that  of  the  Golden  Touch,  also  shows 
that  King  Midas  was  sometimes  not  so  wise  a  monarch 
as  he  should  have  been. 

You  remember  reading  in  another  story  how  Pan,  the 


A  MUSICAL   CONTEST  1 67 

god  of  the  woods,  first  made  the  flute  from  the  reeds  that 
grew  by  the  river.  Now  this  same  Pan  was  a  great  favor- 
ite with  King  Midas,  and  the  king  thought  him  the  finest 
musician  in  the  world.  The  nymphs  of  the  woods,  also, 
loved  to  hear  Pan  play  on  his  flute,  and  at  last  he  became 
so  used  to  hearing  his  praises  sung  that  he,  too,  thought 
himself  the  greatest  musician  in  the  world  ;  and  one  day 
he  went  so  far  as  to  ask  the  great  god  Apollo  to  enter 
with  him  into  a  contest  of  musical  skill. 

Apollo,  the  sun  god,  was,  as  you  know,  the  sweetest 
singer  in  the  world ;  therefore  it  was  a  very  bold  thing 
indeed  for  Pan  to  challenge  him.  Yet  Apollo  agreed  to 
take  part  in  the  trial. 

The  place  of  meeting  was  a  lofty  hill,  not  far  from  the 
palace  of  King  Midas.  As  judge,  they  chose  the  ruler  of 
the  mountain,  a  mighty  king  with  long,  white  locks  and 
flowing  beard,  and  large  dreamy  eyes  that  seemed  to  have 
looked  on  the  hills  about  him  for  hundreds  of  summers 
and  winters. 

Midas,  clothed  in  a  purple  robe,  sat  at  the  judge's  right 
hand,  while  grouped  about  them  were  the  nymphs  and  the 
satyrs,  and  all  who  were  eager  to  be  present  at  the  coming 
contest.  In  front  of  the  judge  stood  Apollo  with  his 
golden  cloak  and  shining  lyre,  and  Pan  himself,  with  his 
goatskin  flung  loosely  about  his  shoulders.  A  strange  and 
beautiful  picture  it  must  have  been,  and  I  wish  all  of  you 
could  have  been  there  to  see  it. 

Pan  was  the  first  to  play,  and,  amid  a  breathless  si- 
lence, he  lifted  his  pipe  of  reeds  to  his  lips. 

There  was  something  in  his  music  that  belonged  to 
the  woods  and  the  rivers  ;  you  could  almost  hear  the  gurg- 
ling of  the  brooks  and  the  sighing  of  the  wind  in  the  trees, 


168  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

with  now  and  then  a  strange  cry,  as  though  a  wild  beast 
had  been  suddenly  startled  from  its  lair.  Yet  for  the  first 
time,  the  listeners  found  his  music  a  little  rude  and  wild ; 
somehow  it  did  not  seem  to  fit  the  place  or  the  occasion. 
Midas,  alone,  expressed  great  delight  at  his  favorite's  play- 
ing, and  called  him  to  sit  by  his  side. 

When  Pan  had  finished,  Apollo  stepped  to  the  front. 
His  hair  gleamed  like  the  sun's  bright  rays,  and  his  eyes 
shone  like  stars.  He  threw  open  his  rich  golden  mantle, 
and,  seizing  his  lyre,  began  to  play  such  sweet,  heavenly 
music  that  all  the  listeners  wept  for  joy.  Even  Pan  threw 
down  his  flute  before  this  wonderful  singer,  who  could 
move  people  to  laughter  or  to  tears  by  touching  the  strings 
of  his  lyre. 

When  Apollo  had  finished,  all  the  people  ran  up  to  him 
with  cries  of  praise  and  thanks,  and  crowned  him  with 
his  own  laurel  wreath  of  victory.  But  Midas,  foolish  King 
Midas,  said  that  to  his  taste  Pan's  music  was  far  more 
beautiful  than  the  sun  god's.  To  punish  him  for  this 
stupid  use  of  his  ears,  Apollo  changed  them  to  long,  furry 
asses'- ears. 

In  great  excitement  the  king  locked  himself  in  his 
royal  chamber  and  then  sent  for  the  court  barber.  After 
making  him  swear  to  keep  his  secret,  Midas  showed  his 
asses'  ears,  and  told  the  barber  to  make  him  a  wig  of 
such  shape  that  it  would  hide  the  ugly  things. 

In  a  short  time,  the  wig  was  on  his  majesty's  head,  and 
he  sent  away  the  barber  with  the  threat  that  he  would 
kill  him  if  he  told  any  one  the  secret.  The  barber,  full  of 
fear,  hastened  from  the  palace.  But  his  secret  preyed  on 
his  mind  until  he  could  neither  eat  nor  sleep  for  thinking 
of  it ;  and  yet  he  dared  not  confide  it  to  any  one. 


THE  SWEET  SINGER  169 

At  last  he  could  stand  it  no  longer.  One  midnight, 
when  every  one  was  fast  asleep,  he  took  a  spade,  and 
walked  to  an  open  meadow  which  was  far  away  from  any 
dwelling  place.  In  the  center  of  it  he  dug  a  deep  hole, 
and  then,  putting  his  mouth  close  to  the  ground,  he  whis- 
pered, 

"  King  Midas  wears  great  asses  ears" 

The  barber  felt  very  much  better  after  this,  and,  rilling 
up  the  hole,  went  home  with  a  lighter  heart. 

Time  passed,  and  over  the  hole  which  the  barber  had 
dug  there  grew  a  thicket  of  hollow  reeds ;  and  when  the 
wind  played  through  them  they  gave  forth  these  strange 
words, 

"King  Midas  wears  great  asses  ears" 

Soon  all  the  king's  subjects  came  to  hear  of  this 
secret  that  the  reeds  whispered,  and  then  they  knew  how 
Apollo  had  punished  their  king  for  his  stupid  judgment. 
But  Midas  could  not  have  blamed  the  barber,  even  if  he 
had  known  about  his  midnight  errand  ;  for  in  truth  the 
poor  fellow  had  never  breathed  the  secret  to  a  single 
person. 


THE   SWEET   SINGER 

HE  the  best  of  all  musicians, 
He  the  sweetest  of  all  singers, 
Beautiful  and  childlike  was  he, 
Brave  as  man  is,  soft  as  woman, 
Pliant  as  a  wand  of  willow, 
Stately  as  a  deer  with  antlers. 

When  he  sang  the  village  listened; 
All  the  women  came  to  hear  him; 


I/O  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

Now  he  stirred  their  souls  to  passion, 
Now  he  melted  them  to  pity. 

From  the  hollow  reeds  he  fashioned 
Flutes  so  musical  and  mellow, 
That  the  brook 

Ceased  to  murmur  in  the  woodland, 
That  the  wood  birds  ceased  from  singing, 
And  the  squirrel 

Ceased  his  chatter  in  the  oak  tree, 
And  the  rabbit 
Sat  upright  to  look  and  listen. 

All  the  many  sounds  of  nature 
Borrowed  sweetness  from  his  singing ; 
All  the  hearts  of  men  were  softened 
By  the  pathos  of  his  music ; 
For  he  sang  of  peace  and  freedom, 
Sang  of  beauty,  love,  and  longing ; 
Sang  of  death  and  life  undying 
In  the  land  of  the  Hereafter. 

HENRY  WADSWORTH  LONGFELLOW  (Hiawatha) 


A    GIANT    WHO    LOVED    A    SEA    NYMPH 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  lived  on  earth  a  strange  race 
of  giants  called  Cyclops.  They  were  a  very  queer  people 
indeed,  and  were  much  larger  and  stronger  than  any  of 
the  giants  you  have  read  about  in  your  fairy  tales.  They 
lived  in  mountain  caves,  guarding  flocks  of  sheep  and  herds 
of  cattle. 

It  was  said  that  when  they  spoke  in  angry  tones,  the 
whole  mountain  shook  and  quivered  with  the  roaring,  and 
the  land  round  about  trembled  as  with  an  earthquake. 


He  the  best  of  all   musicians, 
He  the  sweetest  of  all  singers." 


A   GIANT  AND  SEA  NYMPH  1/3 

The  Cyclops  were  almost  covered  with  hair,  like  ani- 
mals, and  this,  together  with  their  one  fiery  eye,  gave 
them  a  very  fierce  look.  For  these  strange  beings,  instead 
of  having  two  eyes,  as  you  and  I  have?  had  but  a  single 
large  one ;  and  that  one  gleamed  from  the  middle  of  their 
foreheads  with  such  an  angry  glare  that  it  frightened 
you  much  more  than  a  hundred  ordinary  eyes  could  have 
done. 

Indeed,  it  was  said  that  when  the  Cyclops  were  raging 
about  in  their  mountain  caves,  fire  shot  forth  from  those 
eyes,  and  then  they  looked  exactly  like  volcanoes  sending 
forth  flames  from  the  great  holes  in  their  summits. 

You  would  think  that  these  fierce,  wild-looking  crea- 
tures, who  guarded  their  flocks  all  day  long  when  they 
were  not  roaring  or  shooting  out  flames,  would  not  be 
very  likely  to  have  feelings  of  love  or  tenderness.  Yet 
I  am  going  to  tell  you  a  story  which  will  prove  that  the 
Cyclops  could  love  after  all,  although  there  was  something 
rough  and  shaggy  about  the  love,  as  well  as  about  the 
lovers. 

In  the  cave  of  a  mountain  which  overhung  the  blue 
sea,  there  lived  one  of  these  Cyclops  whose  name  was 
Polyphemus.  Every  day  he  sat  upon  the  rocks,  watching 
his  flocks  graze,  and  making  a  great  deal  of  noise  on  his 
hundred-reeded  pipe. 

And  as  he  sat  there,  he  watched  the  sea  nymphs  sport- 
ing in  the  water.  They  would  rise  on  the  crests  of  the 
waves,  looking  almost  like  white  foam  on  the  sea.  Some- 
times they  combed  out  their  yellow  hair,  which  glistened 
like  gold  or  like  the  sunlight  on  the  clear,  sparkling 
water. 

The  fairest   and  whitest  of  all   the  sea    nymphs  was 


STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

Galatea.  To  the  rough  old  Polyphemus  she  seemed  just 
like  a  bit  of  sunshine  and  clear  sky,  and  he  fell  very  deeply 
in  love  with  her. 

He  forgot  to  l®ok  after  his  sheep,  but  let  them  wander 
at  their  own  sweet  will.  His  huge  staff  —  a  pine  tree 
stripped  of  its  boughs  —  lay  idle  at  his  side.  He  was  anx- 
ious to  look  pleasing  to  the  fair  Galatea;  so  he  combed 
out  his  tangled  locks  with  a  rake,  and  cut  his  shaggy 
beard  with  a  scythe,  and  then  gazed  into  the  clear,  still 
water  to  see  how  he  looked.  It  seemed  to  him  that  he 
looked  very  well  indeed,  for,  of  course,  hugeness  and  shag- 
giness  and  one  flaming  eye  formed  the  very  highest  type 
of  beauty  for  a  Cyclops. 

Then  Polyphemus  took  his  pipe  of  reeds,  and  sat  down 
on  a  rock  that  overhung  the  water,  and  sang  a  song  to  his 
love.  At  the  sound  of  his  voice,  the  mountains  shook  and 
the  waves  trembled,  and  the  frightened  sea  nymphs  hid 
themselves  in  their  green  caves.  And  this  is  the  song 
he  sang : 

"  O  Galatea,  you  are  fairer  than  the  petals  of  the 
whitest  blossom,  more  beautiful  than  the  green  fields  or 
the  young  trees,  and  more  pleasing  to  me  than  the  win- 
ter's sun  or  the  summer's  shade.  Why,  then,  do  you  fly 
from  me  ? 

"  If  you  knew  me,  you  would  listen  to  my  pleading. 
My  cave  is  in  the  heart  of  the  mountain,  where  the  heat 
of  the  midday  sun  is  never  felt,  nor  the  icy  cold  of  mid- 
winter ;  there  you  will  find  trees  laden  with  rosy  apples, 
and  vines  with  clusters  of  golden  and  purple  grapes ;  there 
you  may  gather  the  wild  red  strawberries  in  the  woodland 
shade ;  there  will  I  bring  you  chestnuts  and  the  fruit  of 
all  the  other  trees. 


A   GIANT  AND  SEA  NYMPH  175 

"  See  how  great  is  my  wealth,  —  all  these  cows  belong 
to  me,  and  all  these  sheep.  You  shall  have  sweet  milk  to 
drink  and  fresh  white  cheese  to  eat.  For  playmates  you 
shall  have  the  young  deer  and  the  hares  and  the  lambkins 
and  a  pair  of  snow-white  doves,  as  well  as<  the  twin  cubs 
of  a  bear  which  I  have  found  on  the  mountain  summit. 

"O  Galatea,  lift  your  fair  face  from  the  blue  sea. 
Come,  do  not  scorn  the  gifts  I  offer.  See,  too,  how  huge 
I  am.  Great  Jupiter  in  heaven  is  not  larger.  See  the 
long  hair  which  hangs  over  my  shoulders,  and,  like  a  grove 
of  trees,  throws  a  shadow  about  my  head.  Surely,  you 
must  think  this  beautiful.  A  tree  is  bare  without  leaves, 
and  a  horse  is  ugly  without  a  flowing  mane ;  feathers 
adorn  the  birds,  and  the  sheep  are  clothed  with  wool ;  so 
too,  a  beard  and  shaggy  hair  are  becoming  to  a  Cyclops. 
I  have  but  one  eye  in  the  middle  of  my  forehead,  yet  the 
great  sun  in  heaven,  which  sees  all  things,  likewise  has 
but  one  eye. 

"  My  father  rules  over  the  blue  sea  in  which  you  sport. 
Listen  to  my  prayer,  for  I  will  make  you  happy.  Come 
from  your  ocean  home,  oh  whitest  nymph,  come  unto  me 
who  long  for  you." 

Thus  sang  Polyphemus.  But  Galatea  was  only  fright- 
ened at  the  great,  shaggy  monster,  for  such  he  seemed  to 
her,  and  at  the  roar  of  his  awful  voice.  Besides,  she  was 
in  love  with  a  young  shepherd  named  Acis ;  and  so,  when 
Polyphemus  had  finished  his  song,  she  ran  away  to  join 
her  lover  by  the  banks  of  a  stream  that  flowed  into  the  sea. 

But  Polyphemus,,  when  he  found  that  the  lovely  Gala- 
tea fled  from  him  in  spite  of  all  he  offered  her,  became 
very  angry  indeed.  His  voice  began  to  roar,  and  his  eye 
became  fierce  and  flaming. 


1/6  STORIES  OF  LONG  AGO 

He  wandered  into  the  woods,  and  all  the  wild  animals 
hurried  into  places  of  shelter  when  they  felt  the  ground 
tremble  under  his  angry  step,  and  the  little  birds  stopped 
singing,  in  their  fright. 

At  iast  he  came  to  the  spot  where  the  shepherd  and 
Galatea  were  sitting  lovingly  together.  Then  his  heart 
burned  with  wrath,  and  he  seized  a  large  rock  and  hurled 
it  at  the  lovers.  Galatea  slipped  beneath  the  waters  and 
so  escaped,  but  the  shepherd  was  crushed  under  the  heavy 
weight. 

Yet  Acis  did  not  die,  for  the  gods  changed  him  into  a 
stream  of  we.cer,  which  gushed  forth  from  under  the  rock. 
At  first  it  v/as  red  and  looked  like  blood,  but  as  it  flowed 
on,  it  became  clearer  and  clearer,  until  at  last,  pure  as 
crystal,  it  sprang  into  the  sea  and  joined  Galatea  in  her 
cave  under  the  waters  ;  and  there  the  gentle  youth  and 
the  white  sea  nymph  lived  as  happily  as  though  the  poor, 
ugly,  old  Polyphemus  had  never  seen  them. 


THE   SHEPHERD'S    SONG   TO    HIS    LOVE 

COME,  live  with  me  and  be  my  love, 
And  we  will  all  the  pleasures  prove 
That  hills  and  valleys,   dale  and  field, 
And  all  the  craggy  mountains  yield. 

There  will  I  make  thee  beds  of  roses 
And  a  thousand  fragrant  posies, 
A  cap  of  flowers,  and  a  kirtle 
Embroidered  all  with  leaves  of  myrtle ; 


THE  SHEPHERD'S  SONG  177 

A  gown  made  of  the  finest  wool, 
Which  from  our  pretty  lambs  we  pull; 
Fair  lined  slippers  for  the  cold, 
With  buckles  of  the  purest  gold ; 

A  belt  of  straw  and  ivy  buds 
With  coral  clasps  and  amber  studs  ; 
And  if  these  pleasures  may  thee  move, 
Come,  live  with  me  and  be  my  love. 

Thy  silver  dishes  for  thy  meat, 
As  precious  as  the  gods  do  eat, 
Shall  on  an  ivory  table  be 
Prepared  each  day  for  thee  and  me. 

The  shepherd  swains  shall  dance  and  sing 
For  thy  delight  each  May  morning : 
If  these  delights  thy  mind  may  move, 
Then,  live  with  me  and  be  my  love. 

CHRISTOPHER  MARLOWE. 


ADVERTISEMENTS 


LESSONS  IN  THE   SPEAKING  AND 
WRITING  OF  ENGLISH 


By  JOHN  M.  MANLY 

Head  of  the  Department  of  English,  University  of  Chicago 

and  ELIZA  R.  BAILEY 

Teacher  of  Elementary  English  in  Boston 

E  entire  work  of  both  language  lessons  and  grammar  is  based 
upon  the  freshest,  richest,  and  most  interesting  selections  of  litera- 
ture ever  put  into  a  series  of  books  on  English.  The  reading,  drama- 
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delight  to  the  child,  and  in  the  midst  of  this  pleasure  he  scarcely  realizes 
that  he  is  acquiring  facility  in  speaking  and  writing  good  English  and 
is  learning  something  of  the  structure  of  formal  grammar. 

In  Book  II,  intended  for  the  upper  grades,  the  sections  are  so  ar- 
ranged that  the  class  may  take  up  composition  one  year  and  grammar 
the  next,  or  the  subjects  may  be  interwoven  throughout  the  two  years 
as  intimately  as  the  teacher  may  desire.  The  aim  throughout  has 
been  to  treat  these  subjects  not  as  formal  and  theoretical, ,  but  as  vital 
in  the  pupil's  growing  experience,  and  in  his  training  in  the  art  of  think- 
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Everywhere  emphasis  is  laid  on  function  and  not  on  form. 

The  aim  to  make  the  book  practical  is  reinforced  by  constant  atten- 
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catalogues;  in  the  preparation  of  business  letters,  orders  and  checks, 
bills  and  receipts,  telegrams,  lettergrams,  letters  to  newspapers,  news- 
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a  meeting,  and  other  similar  practical  forms. 

BOOK  I  —  314  pages.  30  illustrations.  45  cents 
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BRIEFER  COURSE  —  Book  I,  21 1  pages,  35c.  Book  II  —  293  pages,  50c. 


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THE    WALSH-SUZZALLO    ARITHMETICS 

By  JOHN  H.  WALSH 

Associate  Superintendent  of  Schools,  New  York  City 

and  HENRY  SUZZALLO 

Professor  in  Teachers  College,  Columbia  University 

HPHIS  is  the  first  Arithmetic  to  complete  the  essentials  in  six  school 
years.  It  is  the  first  to  meet  the  fact  that  a  large  percentage  of 
.children  never  reach  the  seventh  school  grade.  It  is  the  first  Arith- 
metic devised  for  use  in  the  present  and  coming  movement  to  articulate 
the  elementary  schools  with  Intermediate  Schools,  Junior  High  Schools, 
Industrial  Continuation  Schools,  etc.,  at  the  end  of  the  sixth  school 
year.  These  books  give  in  six  years  that  absolutely  essential  basis  in 
Arithmetic  which  the  pupil  cannot  get  without  a  teacher,  and  which  is 
necessary  for  him  to  have  if  he  is  to  advance  by  himself  after  leaving 
school. 

The  work  of  the  earlier  grades,  through  the  sixth,  emphasizes  thor- 
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devices  for  getting  children  to  habituate  mechanical  work  quickly  by 
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The  Walsh-Suzzallo  Arithmetic  represent  a  double  principle  in  grad- 
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said  of  these  books,  that  no  topic  in  the  fourth  grade  is  of  larger  social 
utility  than  any  one  included  in  the  third  grade,  and  so  on  up  the  grades. 
This  social  principle  has  given  to  these  books  the  first  thoroughgoing 
organization  of  upper  grade  topics  in  Arithmetic. 

Two  BOOK  SERIES  —  Fundamental  Processes,  36  cents 

Practical  Applications,  65  cents 

THREE  BOOK  SERIES  —  Fundamental  Processes,  36  cents 
Essentials,  40  cents 
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THE   HALIBURTON  READERS 


By  MARGARET  W.  HALIBURTON 


HTHE  author  of  this  series  knows  children  and  their  interests; 
schools  and  their  possibilities;  pedagogy  and  its  lessons; 
nature,  literature  and  art,  and  their  resources  in  education. 
The  series  has  individuality.  Beginning  with  live  phonics  and 
vivid  drama,  it  includes  fairy  and  folk  lore,  games,  stories  of 
school  activities,  of  primitive  life,  of  nature,  of  child  life  in  other 
lands,  dramatizations,  and  a  wealth  of  standard  literature  that 
appeals  to  the  growing  child. 

Bertha  M.  Bentley,  Primary  Supervisor,  Speyer  School,  Teachers  College,  Columbia  Uni- 
versity: I  have  examined  the  Haliburton  Readers  quite  thoroughly  and  find  them  very 
satisfactory.  For  readers  built  upon  a  phonic  scheme  they  are  far  ahead  of  most  readers 
of  that  sort.  The  material  is  literary  in  character  and  interesting  to  children. 

Ann  Beers,  Supervising  Principal,  Jefferson  School,  Washington,  D.  C.:  The  Haliburton 
Readers  are  striking  in  many  ways:  in  binding,  in  type,  in  paper,  in  illustration,  in  ar- 
rangement, in  subject  matter,  in  suggestion,  in  vocabulary,  and  in  many  other  delightful 
matters.  One  can  say  most  emphatically  that  these  books  make  an  inestimably  valuable 
acquisition  to  the  reading  matter  of  a  school  system.  I  can  aho  report  the  very  earnest 
approval  of  the  books  by  the  teachers  of  some  of  my  best  schools. 

PHIMER.     132  pages.     Illustrations  in  color 30  cents 

FIRST  READER.     142  pages.     Illustrated 30  cents 

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TEACHERS'  MANUAL 15  cents 

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THIRD  READER.     232  pages.     Illustrated         40  cents 

FOURTH  READER.     325  pages.     Illustrated 50  cents 

FIFTH  READER.     In  preparation. 


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BOURNE  AND  BENTON'S  HISTORIES 

A  GRAMMAR  SCHOOL  COURSE  IN  HISTORY 
AS  RECOMMENDED  BY  THE  REPORT  OF 
THE  COMMITTEE  OF  EIGHT  OF  THE 
AMERICAN  HISTORICAL  ASSOCIATION 


INTRODUCTORY   AMERICAN    HISTORY 

By  HENRY  E.  BOURNE  and  E.  J.  BENTON 

Professors  of  History  in  Western  Reserve  University 

THE  narrative  begins  with  the  European  background  of  American  His- 
tory, and  continues  through  the  period  of  discovery  and  exploration. 
A  vivid  account  of  the  things  best  worth  knowing  about  the  Greeks, 
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The  significance  and  continuity  of  history  are  thereby  made  to  contrib- 
ute to  the  pupil's  growing  knowledge  of  American  history. 

Cloth.     Illustrations  and  maps.     271  pages.     60  cents. 


HISTORY  OF  THE   UNITED   STATES 

By  HENRY  E.  BOURNE  and  E.  J.  BENTON 

PROMINENCE  is  given  to  economic  and  social  history  and  to  the 
great  westward  movement;  military  details  are  subordinate; 
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the  type  of  service  that  it  renders  to  the  rising  generation. 

Cloth.     Illustrations  and  maps.     598  pages.     $1.00. 

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WINSLOW'S   GEOGRAPHY  READERS 

By  I.  O.  WINSLOW 

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HP  HIS  series  occupies  a  unique  position  in  that  it  combines 
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I  _THE   EARTH   AND    ITS   PEOPLE 

Covers  the  introductory  course  in  geography.  Here  are  given  the 
necessary  facts  about  the  soil,  atmosphere,  earth  and  waters,  and  an 
industrial  survey  of  the  Continents. 

Cloth.        191  pages.        23  maps;   7  in  color.        126  illustrations.        50  cents. 

II  — THE   UNITED   STATES 

Builds  upon  the  foundation  laid  in  Book  I,  and  completes  the  treat- 
ment of  this  country  by  giving  all  the  essentials  for  an  elementary  course. 
Industries,  commerce,  and  natural  resources  are  emphasized. 

Cloth.        223  pages.        19  maps;   7  in  color.        155  illustrations.        50  cents. 

Ill  — OUR  AMERICAN   NEIGHBORS 

Gives  a  complete  account  of  Canada,  Mexico,  Central  America,  South 
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Cloth.        206  pages.        13  maps;   5  in  color.        151  illustrations.        50  cents. 

IV  — EUROPE 

The  facts  best  worth  knowing  about  the  different  countries,  their 
people,  industries,  and  cities,  are  charmingly  presented. 

Cloth.        193  pages.        7  maps;  4  in  color.        155  illustrations.        50  cents. 

V  — DISTANT   COUNTRIES 

Asia,  Africa,  and  Australia  are  each  treated  after  the  plan  followed  in 
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History 


Barnes's  (Everett)  American  History  for  Grammar  Grades 90 

A  complete  course  in  a  single  volume. 

Barnes's  American  History  by  Grades  —  Part  I,  .70 ;  Part  II 75 

Bourne  and  Benton's  Introductory  American  History 60 

Embodies  the  sixth  grade  course  recommended  by  the  Committee  of  Eight. 
Bourne  and  Benton's  History  of  the  United  States 1.00 

Emphasizes  economic,  industrial,  geographical,  and  national  development. 
Cornman  and  Gerson's  Topical  Survey  of  United  States  History.     .60 

A  valuable  book  for  the  review  of  significant  topics. 

Hodgdon's  First  Course  in  American  History.     Book  1 65 

Book  II ' 65 

The  greater  events  in  connection  with  the  lives  of  the  greater  men. 
Sheldon's  American  History 1.15 

Follows  the  source- method  of  using  many  extracts  from  original  documents 

Sheldon's  Teacher's  Manual  to  American  History 60 

Sheldon-Barnes  Studies  in  Historical  Method 90 

A  valuable  aid  to  grammar  grade  teachers. 

Thomas's  Elementary  History  of  the  United  States 60 

Biographical  in  method  and  especially  interesting. 
Thomas's  History  of  the  United  States 1.00 

Gives  prominence  to  the  period  since  the  United  States  became  a  nation. 

Thomas's  History  of  Pennsylvania 75 

Thompson's  Primary  History  of  the  United  States 60 

Biographical  and  particularly  full  regarding  the  South. 
Thompson's  History  of  the  United  States 1.00 

Exceptionally  clear  and  full  in  tracing  the    contrasting   history    of   North 
and  South. 
Warren's  Stories  from  English  History 72 

A  beginner's  book  in  English  history  written  with  great  skill. 

Wilson's    Compendium    of   United    States    and     Contemporary 

History 40 

Historical  Readers 

Bass's  Stories  of  Pioneer  Life 40 

The  settling  of  the  middle  West;  a  book  for  middle  grades. 
Holbrook's  Cave,  Mound,  and  Lake  Dwellers 40 

The  story  of  primitive  life  for  intermediate  grades. 
Horton's  Group  of  Famous  Women 50 

Inspiring  accounts  of  women  who  have  done  deeds   worthy  of  a   place  in 
history. 

Pratt's  America's  Story  for  America's  Children  —  (Grades  4  to  7) 

I.  The  Beginner's  Book 40 

II.  Discoverers  and  Explorers:  1000  to  1609 40 

III.  The  Earlier  Colonies,  from  1601  to  1760 40 

IV.  The  Later  Colonies 40 

V.  The  Revolution  and  the  Republic 40 

Snedden's  Docas,  the  Indian  Boy  of  Santa  Clara 40 

Starr's  American  Indians 48 

Stone  and  Fickett's  Everyday  Life  in  the  Colonies 35 

Stone  and  Fickett's  Days  and  Deeds  100  Years  Ago 35 

D.  C.  HEATH  &  CO.,  Boston,  New  York,  Chicago 


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Allen's  School  Grammar  of  the  English  Language 60 

A  clear  and  concise  presentation  of  essentials,  with  exercises  for  practice. 

Benson's  Practical  Speller 25 

Contains  nearly  13,000  words.     Part  I,  18  cents;  Part  II,  18  cents. 

Benson  and  Glenn's  Practical  Speller  and  Definer 30 

A  language  speller,  containing  7000  words  properly  graded. 

Haaren's  Word  and  Sentence  Book.     Book  1 20 

Lays  the  foundation  for  correct  spelling  and  writing  exercises. 

Haaren's  Word  and  Sentence  Book.     Book  II 25 

A  language  speller  with  lessons  in  word  building,  study  of  synonyms,  etc. 

Harrington's  Course  for  Non-English  Speaking  People.    I.     .25 

Teaches  the  vocabulary  and  sentence  structure  of  everyday  speech;  suited 
to  the  needs  of  youth  and  adults  learning  to  speak  and  read  English. 

Harrington's  Course  for  Non-English  Speaking  People.    II.     .30 

Contains  practical  lessons  upon  industrial,  social,  civic,  and  patriotic  topics. 

Hyde's  Two-Book  Course  in  English.     Book  I 35 

Lessons  in  the  correct  use  of    English,  with  the  rudiments  of  grammar. 

Hyde's  Two-Book  Course  in  English.     Book  II   .  . . 60 

Lessons  in  language,  composition,  and  technical  grammar. 

Hyde's  Practical  Course  in  English.     Book  1 45 

A  new  book  emphasizing  both  oral  and  written  expression,  with  lessons  on 
the  study  of  good  literature  and  upon  correct  forms  and  usages. 

Manly-Bailey's  Lessons  in  English.     Book  I 45 

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Penniman's  New  Practical  Speller 20 

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Richards's  Primary  Speller 25 

Based  on  phonics  with  exercises  in  word-building. 

Richards's  Grammar  Grade  Speller 30 

Exercises  in  word-building,    dictation  exercises,  abundant  reviews,  simple 
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Sanford,  Brown  and  Smith's  Modern  Course  in  English.    I.     .40 

Language  lessons,  with  much  material  for  practice  drawn  from  rural  life. 

Sanford,  Brown  and  Smith's  Modern  Course  in  English.    II.     .50 

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newly  proposed  uniform  nomenclature. 

Spalding's  Problem  of  Elementary  Composition 50 

Indicates  practical  ways  by  which  work  in   composition    may  be  unified 
with  that  in  geography,  science,  history,  and  literature. 

Taylor's  Beginnings  in  English 40 

Story  telling,  dialogues,  dramatization,  spelling,  and  writing. 

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Detailed  studies  of  thirty-five  minerals. 

Brown's  Good  Health  for  Girls  and  Boys 45 

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Brown's  Health  in  the  Home 60 

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Clarke's  Astronomical  Lantern  4.50 

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Clarke's  How  to  Find  the  Stars 15 

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Col  ton's  Elementary  Physiology  and  Hygiene 72 

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Eckstorm's  The  Bird  Book 72 

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Lessons  on  elementary  science  for  grammar  and  intermediate  grades. 

Scott's  Nature  Study  and  the  Child 1.50 

Outlines  of  courses,  with  detailed  studies  of  animal  and  plant  life. 

Sever's  Elements  of  Agriculture 50 

Shaler's  First  Book  in  Geology 60 

A  helpful  adjunct  to  the  study  of  geography.     Boards,  45  cents. 

Spear's  Leaves  and  Flowers 25 

An  elementary  botany  for  pupils  under  twelve. 

Torelle's  Plant  and  Animal  Children 60 

Complete  life  histories  of  typical  plants  and  animals. 

Weed's  Farm  Friends  and  Farm  Foes 1.00 

An  elementary  textbook  on  weeds  and  insects. 

Weed  and  Riley's  Crop  Production 

Fifty  practical  studies  of  crops  —  farm,  garden,  flower,  and  fruit. 

Wright's  Seaside  and  Wayside  Nature  Reader,  No.  4 60 

Elementary  lessons  in  geology,  astronomy,  world  life,  etc. 

D.  C.  HEATH  &  CO.,  Boston,  New  York,  Chicago 


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UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


